Kesshite Wasuremasu
by Aesura
Summary: She looks up to gaze at his coal obsidian eyes as he gazes downward at her enchanting sky blue eyes. They both thought, "Is this love?" Who says opposites can't attract? SasuFemNaru… MORE PAIRINGS INSIDE
1. Prologue

**Summary: **She looks up to gaze at his coal obsidian eyes as he gazes downward at her enchanting sky blue eyes. They both thought, _"Is this love?"_ Who says opposites can't attract? SasuFemNaru… MORE PAIRINGS INSIDE

**Pairings: **SasuFemNaru, ItaFemKyuu, LeeSaku, NejiTen, ShikaTema, KibaHina, ChouIno

**Warnings:** OOC-ness, language

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto

* * *

**Kesshite Wasuremasu  
**_by Aesura_

_**Prologue**_

* * *

Thunder ripped through the air. Screams echoed throughout the night sky, followed by a sickening crack of human bones. Leaf jounins and chuunins lay scattered on the battlefield, some disoriented in places unimaginable. Their surviving comrades jumped back a good few yards to get within throwing range of the murderer.

"Hold it here until Yondaime-sama arrives!"

The remaining shinobis followed the order given out to them with determination, only the thought of the Yondaime coming any minute to get rid of this demon drives them forward. Kunais and shurikens were thrown and the beast to delay its venture into Konohakagure no Sato. Lifting its paw off a now dead shinobi, the nine-tailed fox pounced to a new area, knocking trees out of the way in doing so, to avoid the onslaught of weapons aiming for it.

Kyuubi no Kitsune snarled as wave after wave of kunais and shurikens embed themselves into its hind legs. The beast whipped one of its tails on to an unexpected chuunin, killing him instantly. Truly, the nine-tailed demon fox is a powerful beast; a single swipe of one of its nine tails can raise tsunamis and flatten mountains. The demon's red, ruby eyes were glazed over with clouded lust for blood. Its orange fur casts an ill omen as the full moon's light shines down upon it. Those nine tails that Kyuubi possesses swerved behind it, challenging anyone that dares to come within its path.

Far in the distance, few shinobis could hear someone shout, "It's the Yondaime!"

Several teams cheered and renewed their efforts. The man looked at the fox through blonde spiked hair and said to those around him, "Hold it here! We can not allow it to get to the village!"

The Hokage looked at the demon fox with calculating blue eyes. His white cape with red flames at the bottom of the material and the kanji words, _'Yondaime'_ written on the back fluttered in the light breeze. A small bundle wrapped in a white blanket was cradled carefully in the Yondaime's arms. Little tuffs of blonde hair poked out of the blanket childishly. The blonde haired man gently shifted the bundle upward a bit so his hands were free. He bit his thumb, just enough for blood to flow through, and made hand signs at high speed until he slapped the ground.

"**KUCHIYOSE NO JUTSU"**

Smoke from the summoning covered a few kilometers of ground, amid the Yondaime has now risen stories up into the air on top of the great toad summon. Colossal webbed feet pulverized the trees standing in his way, crushing them into derby.

"Hello, Gamabunta. No time no see," Minato said while looking grimly at Kyuubi.

"Could say the same thing to you, Minato," Gamabunta bellowed, hiding his shock of seeing the most powerful of demons before him. A deafening roar rippled out into the sky, signaling the little reunion over.

"Gamabunta! Let's go!"

The toad grunted before charging at the demon fox. Gamabunta drew knife from its sheath and slashed it at the fox. But the nine tailed demon bit at the knife with its sharp, monstrous teeth and held the toad from moving forward. Its voice was a low rumble of laughter. The fox flicked one of its claws into the air, and strike with full force on to the toad's left eye. The red toad swore loudly with pain.

"What ever you are planning better be worth it Minato," Gamabunta seethed, knowing that the claw mark is going to leave a mark. The frog summon was pushed back and forth not willing to pull back his knife from the fox's mouth or let the fox push him aside. The fourth ignored the rough ride, allocating a small fraction of his chakra to staying on top of the toads' head. The Hokage was still silently gathering chakra and performing seals with his hands. His hands blurred until his final hand seal, 'tori'.

A cold breath ran across Minato's neck, he ignored the impulse to shiver. The jutsu is working. The death god, Shinigami, rose above him and the Kyuubi. He could see its white robe billowing through the moonlight. Minato could not help but gasp deeply at the sudden rush of his impending death. Suddenly, an idea popped up into his mind.

"I got it!" The Fourth leapt from Gamabunta's head and dove towards the fox's head. "Goodbye, Gamabunta."

"Wait, what are you-" Gamabunta was cut off when he was forcefully dismissed by the summoner. The Yondaime landed on the head of the demon fox and gripped the fur in his free hand. He peeled away the blanket from his daughter's body, just enough to see her exposed stomach to preformed the forbidden seal on.

"**FUUIN JUTSU****SHIKI FUUJIN"**

Kyuubi howled in pain. Kyuubi looked into the sky and saw the form of a monster-like deity with a knife in its mouth and a human soul wrapped around in its robes. The arm of death was inside the soul, coming closer and closer to it. The demon fox's immortal body and soul understood what was happening to it. Kyuubi's eyes seemed to loose its glazed look, only to be replace with fear and confusion. But as quick as those looks came, they vanished along with the fox's body. The fox let out its final roar into the air, before being sealed into the body of the infant. The clawed hand from the Shinigami is still in the middle of the Hokage's chest. He performed two more seals when he felt his body falling to the ground. His vision started to blur.

"_Give me a few more seconds, __Shinigami__!"_ Minato hugged his daughter closer to him, embracing the last moments he has with his only child, and last family member.

"I'm sorry, my daughter. Hopefully, you'll forgive me in the future. Remember, I'll always love you.." He slowly closed his eyes, waiting for death to sweep through him. His daughter, Naruto, was crying in both pain and sorrow. Pain, from the recent sealing done on her body and sorrow, as if understanding what her father is saying.

While in the midst, Shinigami has been watching the father-daughter scene fold out in front of him. He could see his next sacrifice's soul slipping out of his body with each passing second. A concentrated look is shown on the Shinigami's face.

"…_**One sacrifice is good enough for now.."**_

With his decision made, he released his grip from the Yondaime's soul, it gradually receding back into his body. Minato snapped his eyes open and took an intake of breath sharply. Even, though he and Naruto are still falling from hundreds of feet up in the air, everything seemed to be going in slow motion for him.

"_..I'm…alive? But how?"_ Minato then glanced over at the figure looming above him, seeming to be fading and getting smaller time by time.

"**Be thankful, Yondaime. Not many get a second chance in life.."**

Minato smiled tiredly, still exhausted from his battle with Kyuubi. _"Thank you, Shinigami… Uh, not enough chakra… can't..-"_

He loses conscious from the use of so much chakra and stamina, plummeting to the ground from so high up in the air.

* * *

"That damn gaki! Why did he ever thought of using such a dangerous jutsu?" An hour has pass since the attack of Kyuubi reined over Konoha. Hundreds of shinobi and villagers have already died from the onslaught of this demon fox. The white haired man jumped from tree top to tree top, trying to reach the area of the fighting. "_Y__ou better not die on me, Minato."_

The memory of their last meeting flashed through his mind as he sped up his pace.

_Namikaze Minato smiled wearily at the seal he had finally completed. It had taken three whole days to finish the scroll that was going to give him the power to stop the most powerful of demons. Minato glanced around his office in the Hokage's tower, his eyes finally resting on the moon that shown brightly past the dark clouds and in to the office, through the open windows. A ghost of a smile tugged his lips when he felt the presence of another. The clickery-clack of the wooden slippers gave away his visitor's identity._

"_Jiraiya-sensei," Minato said knowingly._

"_Minato." Jiraiya replied back. They both stared at each other, neither faltering nor moving. One may think they're having a staring contest. Jiraiya was the one to break the silence. "It's coming pretty fast."_

_The blonde sighed morosely. "Yeah, I know."_

"…"

"…"

"_Are you still going along with that plan of yours?" Jiraiya said seriously._

_Minato sighed. 'Not this again.'_

"_You know I have to. I have to protect this village and all of its people. They're precious to me."_

"_What about your daughter? Isn't she important to you?"_

"_She is but… hopefully she'll understand why I must do this." He spoke the words with much calm and__nonchalant that it pissed off the Sannin to a high degree._

"_Minato, you're making a mistake! If you die, Naruto will have no one left. She will be hated and treated terribly for the rest of her life." Jiraiya's voice echoed throughout the room, his cool stature replaced by an aggravated look. Minato still had his composed look, as if he had not even heard his sensei's outburst. He walked over to the crib placed in the center of the office, eyes resting upon his daughter. She's sleeping soundly, her umbilical cord still freshly cut off. _

_Minato carefully wrapped her in a blanket and lifted her up from the crib, into his arms. "She is the only sacrifice I can make. I couldn't ask another family to give up their child. That wouldn't be right." His tone was melancholy sad,__ it filling his heart with the guilt of a being a bad father._

_Seconds tick by in silence while tension begins to form in the air. It was broken by the young Hokage. "Ne sensei, when it's over could you-"_

_Loud piercing shrieks cut him before he could continue bringing him to alertness. It was starting, the Kyuubi had broken the village walls._

"_Don't follow me! Promise me." He shouted through the chaos to be heard._

"_But…"_

"_Promise me!" there was hesitance before affirmation. Yondaime gave a relieve sigh and gaved his mentor a small sad smile before jumping through the window and into the open night sky._

_Jiraiya watched for a moment as his student sped off quickly in a yellow streak before turning around to face the now deserted room again._ "_If you're not back in an hour, gaki, I'm going after you. That is my promise."_

An earsplitting howl snapped Jiraiya out of his daydream, awaking him to the situation a couple of kilometers in front of him. That sound, it could only come from the…

"Kyuubi…" Jiraiya whispered.

He stopped on top of one of the treetops, looking around for any signs of where the Kyuubi may be. Jiraiya sees nothing. The air had an eerie silence to it that sent a shiver into his spine. He knows that this is the right spot, the littered dead shinobis on the ground indicate so. Fear suddenly grips Jiraiya. _"What if he succeeded in sealing Kyuubi in Naruto? What if the jutsu was a success? What if the bargain was completed? What if he-?"_

He was cut off from his assumptions by sensing a familiar presence above him. Minato. Jiraiya glances up where Minato was, only to see him falling, Naruto still in his arms. He sped up to him and caught his dumb student in his arms, grumbling about how his prize student can be such a baka sometimes. He landed safely on the ground, with both of the last two remaining Namikaze's with him.

Naruto was screaming and crying, a noise that irritated the old man. But as irritated as he was, he could not help but feel sorry, sorry and proud. Jiraiya rearranged Minato so that he was carrying him on his back, Naruto cushioned in his right arm. Jiraiya looked down at the baby, and felt a grandfatherly surge of protectiveness. He noticed that the girl's navel where the angry black spiral was burned. He frowned.

"_I need to get her to the hospital immediately,"_ Jiraiya thought. He adjusted the weight in his arm carefully. "_If only Tsunade was here."_

Forming a hand seal, he disappeared in a puff of smoke along with the unconscious Hokage and Naruto.

* * *

The Sandaime paused before the Hokage door, a sense of apprehension swept over him. The old man was wearing his former red robe with white coat, the Hokage hat with the kanji word, _'fire'_ on the center of it adorned his head. Instead of his usual relaxed face, the present one was plagued with deep worry and fatigue. The events that occurred the previous day still plagued his mind. The Kyuubi - has it finally been vanquished? Will all terror lie to rest? Uncertainty erupted in his inner self and slightly trembling, he pushed open the door quietly and slowly - as if a single sound will cause an avalanche of catastrophes.

The dim room was illuminated by the faint sunlight shining through the windows. Scrolls lay forgotten on the cluttered floor, fallen down from the goring battle last night. Did all this mayhem and havoc occur just yesterday? Crying was emanated from the center of the room, snapping the Hokage out of his delirious state. Cautiously, he walked over to the crib placed a few feet from him. He could see a baby girl crying loudly while a man lay slumped on the side of the crib - eyes closed in exhaustion from the ordeal last night. The old man closed his eyes, sighing at scene in front of him.

" Quiet.. Little one.." He whispered and much to his surprise, the baby compromised, staying silent. He then turned his attention to the sleeping figure.

"Jiraiya," the Hokage said, shaking the shoulder of his former student. "Wake up, it is already noon."

"Mmm…" Jiraiya moaned and opened up his sleep-deprived eyes groggily.

"Go home and get some rest, Jiraiya. I can take over from here."

"But I can't just leave Naruto! I owe it to Minato that much-"

"Minato will understand," the Hokage said, ending the argument immediately. "Now go home and get a decent sleep."

Jiraiya sighed in defeat and got up to his feet, walking to the door in silence. Just as he puts his hand on the knob, about to leave the room, he turns around to face his former sensei. "Can you handle giving the news to the villagers?"

The Third nods his head in response. "Yes, …I could. You do not need to worry about me, Jiraiya, I will be fine. Just take care of yourself for now."

Jiraiya, taking his words to heart, left the room quietly, closing the door on his way out. Sarutobi dropped his act almost immediately after Jiraiya left. The truth is he did not know how to tell the villagers the truth, of how the Kyuubi is not really dead but is actually sealed away in an infant. The Yondaime's daughter no less! Taking a few gulps of air, he opened his eyes and brought his attention back to the infant.

The baby lay on the white cloth sheets, stark naked yet angel like, almost ethereal, beautiful and unmarred except for the distinct black spiral seal at her abdomen and the three whiskered-like markings on both her cheeks. He picks up the baby gently from her bed, wrapping a sheet cover around her body in the process. Patting the little one, he smiled warmly as he melted at the sight of the tousled blond ringlets framing her heart shaped face and her eyes so startlingly cerulean blue.

"The resemblance is uncanny," he muttered under his breath. The Sandaime walked over to the tower window that overlooked Konoha, he massaged his aching shoulder at the same time.

The destruction of the battle was visible. Houses had been struck down by the blast, walls swept away, shutters and window frames ripped off and smashed. The heart of the village where the post office, bazaar and eateries once stood was no longer visible. The stricken village was strewn with wreckage. Protruding from the debris were smashed crockery, parts of broken furniture, bits of wood and debris from mixed buildings. At the base of the tower, the population of Konoha was waiting impatiently. Noticing the crowd, he unwillingly ventured out into the view of his people. "It'll be a long difficult day."

As soon as the Third Hokage appeared, an impenetrable silence hung in the air. The atmosphere was electrifying and intense with sobriety. The old man stared at the villagers for a full minute. And every second, he could feel himself growing older and wearier. Bracing himself, he cleared his throat and started. "The terrible beast that slew countless ninja has been defeated-"

He was cut off by the countless cheers and applause caused by the villagers.

"-But," Sarutobi continued over the sudden uproar, "is not dead."

The crowd quieted down abruptly, all traces of joy and happiness was replaced by terror and fear.

"Instead, the demon was sealed into the body of a newborn since it was too powerful to be killed."

There was a deadly hush after he made the announcement. Silence blanketed the village as all became subdued by the news. After a long moment, a jounin asked, "Then Hokage-sama, who is the vessel of the demon?"

Sarutobi closed his eyes, knowing he can not prolong the inedible. Opening them, he proclaimed a seldom tone that is heard throughout the crowd, "The Yondaime sealed it in a child named Naruto."

As if something snapped, the villagers started speaking in hushed whispers. Words like, _"We must kill this demon spawn before it kills us," _and, _"This is out chance to avenge those whose lives were taken away by that demon",_ linger in the air.

Then the Sandaime said something that shocked the whole village. "..Or should I say Namikaze Naruto...his own daughter."

Stunned, the villagers could only look up at their Hokage_. "Why would Yondaime-sama do such a thing, and to his own flesh and blood no less." _

As if reading the villagers' minds, he answered, "The Yondaime could not bear to sacrifice another parent's child..and also, he knew he could only trust his daughter with this burden."

Before the crowd could interject even more, he announced, "With that said, I'm now issuing a new law, stating that the information I had just told you all is now an S-class secret. It must be kept confidential, and anyone who dares to speak of it to anybody will experience punishment worse than death."

Leaving the gossiping crowd, the Sandaime entered into the Hokage's office again, walking over to the now slumbering infant. He gazed downward at her peaceful face, hoping she could endure this burden like the Yondaime said. "_I tried my best Minato. I just hope it was enough."_

* * *

_**.::7 years later…::.**_

A seven year old boy wondered around in the forest, seeming to be looking for something or someone. Black bangs on either side of his face framed his porcelain skin with black spikes tussled out on the back of his head. Onyx eyes scanned behind the bushes he pulled back with irritation, again not finding what he is looking for. Adorned in a simple attire of a black shirt with the Uchiha fan on the back, black shorts, and black sandals, he huffed and crossed his arms in frustration.

"I can't believe aniki ditch me like that!"

With that accusation said, the young boy's memory of what happened that morning came to recollection.

_A thirteen year old Uchiha was putting on his sandals, getting ready to leave his house to start his first day as an ANBU Captain. This person was Uchiha Itachi, the Uchiha prodigy. __He graduated from the Ninja academy at age 7 with top grades, mastered the Sharingan at age 8, became a Chuunin at age 10, and now recently became ANBU Captain at age 13 two weeks prior. Just as Itachi was standing up and about to slide the door open, he felt the presence of his younger brother running towards him, ready to send a surprise punch his way which did not surprised him at all._

_He mentally groaned and swiftly turned around to face his younger brother, raising his right hand gradually. Itachi's little brother had a shocked look etched across his face as he slows down to a halt, though not quick enough. He closes his eyes and waits for the impact. But all Itachi did was extended his two fingers and poked his little brother on his forehead. He immediately rubbed the part that his older brother touched, a simple routine they have every time before Itachi leaves for another mission._

"_Not fair!" His little brother wined._

_Itachi just shook his head, frowning at the sudden migraine. Can thirteen year olds even get migraines? His dear little brother had a long way to go if he wanted to defeat him._

"_I don't have time for this, otouto," Itachi replies to his brother._

"_You always poke me on the forehead and say 'I don't have time for this, otouto.' ever since two weeks ago. Well why? Can't you just spend at least one day with me, aniki, without using that same excuse over and over again?" His face faulted and dropped low facing the floor. Itachi sighed, feeling the migraine coming at him again. How is he going to get out of this situation without hurting his little brother's feelings?_

"_Sasuke-chan? Itachi-chan? What's happening in here?" questioned a new feminine voice. Sasuke and Itachi, who scowled at his mother's use of the hated suffix, turned to faced her. A young looking woman was now standing a few feet from them._

_Black silky hair flows down to her mid-back with bangs parted at either side of her face. Porcelain skin, which both sons have inherited, graces her like a full moon's luminous glow. Her eyes, like a night time sky, boarded down on the two boys with slight confusion and worry at what all their commotion was about. She adorns a long-sleeved, neutral colored shirt with a maroon colored skirt that went down to her knees. The pale yellow apron she is wearing indicates that she just came out of the kitchen. This woman is none other than Uchiha Mikoto, mother of Itachi and Sasuke._ "_Well?"_

_There was a faint mischivous smile drawn on Sasuke's face as a sudden idea popped up in his mind, but it quickly faded as it appeared._ "_No, okaa-san," Itachi quickly interjected, "nothing's going on here."_

_Sasuke started to cry at that exact moment. Mikoto saw Sasuke cried._

"_Oh my, don't cry sweetie." Concern crept up her motherly face. She approaches Sasuke and embraces him in a comforting hug. She then turned to Itachi and shot an accusing glare at her oldest son. "Itachi, what is happening here? Why is Sasuke crying?" _

"_I don't know! He just started crying when you came in here!" Itachi explained, not wanting to get on his okaa-san's bad side. His mother can be pretty scary when she gets mad. As if on cue, Sasuke cried even harder. Itachi shot a sharp glare at his brother. __'Otouto, you are so-'_

_Mikoto cut off Itachi's musing. "Itachi, explain now. Why did you make your brother cry, young man?"_

"_I did not make him cry!" Itachi retorted, glaring angrily at Sasuke._

"_I don't believe you. He can't be crying for no apparent reason. Now tell me the truth!"_

_Her voice was louder than usual. Not a good sign._ "_I. Am. Telling. The. Truth." Itachi replied between his gritted teeth, getting irritated even more with his mother's use of that accursed suffix again._

"_What is going on here?" questioned another new voice. Everyone turned. A tall, lean, and well built man appeared. His sharp coal eyes gazed at everyone seriously. He held a strong resemblance to Itachi, especially his eyes and the diagonal lines underneath either side of his eyes. No doubt that he is Itachi's and Sasuke's father, Uchiha Fugaku, the head of the Uchiha clan and captain of the Konoha Military Police Force._

_Itachi groaned. If his father interferes, things would turn out rather complicated. '__I did not wish for this.'_

_Without saying anything, __Itachi sighed irritably and picked up his younger brother with abnormal ease. He gave a one hand wave to his mother and walked away with his brother under his arm. Mikoto, proud and wonderful mother that she is, waved back enthusiastically, knowing that her job was done. __Fugaku just __stares at his two sons and wife in bewilderment._

_When they were out of sight of the Uchiha compound, Itachi dropped Sasuke (not so gently) on the ground._

"_Oof," Sasuke said while getting up and started to rub his buttocks._

"_Hey, aniki, that hurt!" Sasuke shouted at his brother, only to find that he wasn't there anymore, but heading off into the forest._

"_Aniki," Sasuke yelled, forgetting about the pain, "wait up!" Sasuke ran up to his brother and caught up with him, trying to keep up with his pace along the way. Though that was a bit difficult with Sasuke's short paces and Itachi's long strides._

"_So aniki, what do you want to do today? I was thinking you could help me with my __shuriken training. I'm getting better at it, but I am not as good as you yet. You can see how much I improved and help me what I need to work on. Or you could teach me one of your cool jutsus, or-" While Sasuke kept rambling on, he did not notice the evil little glint that appeared in his brother's eyes. But as quickly as it appeared, it was gone. The idea of his mind is now set into motion._

'_Pay back time, otouto.'_

"_Sasuke," Itachi suddenly said, making little brother stop what he was saying. They both came to a halt in the middle of the forest._

"_What is it, aniki-"_

"_This is the first part of your training. Are you ready for it?"_

_Determination lilted up in Sasuke's eyes as he faced his brother. "Hai."_

_Itachi kneels down to Sasuke's level and turns him around to face a tree far off in the distance._ "_Training lesson #1: Stare at the knothole on that tree for an hour," Itachi stated._

_Sasuke sweatdropped and turned to face his brother. "Are you actually serious, aniki?"_

"_Of course, otouto. This exercise, when mastered, will enhance your precision and accuracy skills. With those to skills combined, you will be able to throw a __shuriken at a target with perfect aim."_

"_Wow, really?" Sasuke asked, staring at Itachi with awe._

"_Now would I lie to you, otouto?"_

"_No," Sasuke automatically answered._

"_Good, then get started."_

"_Hai!" Sasuke begins to stare at the knothole with great intensity. His eyes are slightly narrowed, concentration flowing in them. But Sasuke was too engrossed in his special "training" exercise to notice that his brother was walking away noiselessly._

_Itachi was silently laughing inside as he walked off. 'Ah, otouto. If only you knew how naïve you really are.' With that thought said, he disappeared in a swirl of leaves._

_One hour has elapse, and Sasuke is starting to feel the strain in his eyes._

"_Hey aniki, I don't think this is working. All I feel improving is the dryness in my eyes."_

_Silence greeted Sasuke's reply._

"_Aniki?"_

_Sasuke turned around, but only finding a vacant spot of where his brother was suppose to be._

A frown appeared on Sasuke's face as the not-so-fawn memory finally ended. "And I trusted him too…"

Suddenly, a cute, puzzled look settled on the boy's face as he hears a faint sound not a ways far from where he was standing. Curious of the sound, he delays his search and follows to find the source of the noise. After a while, Sasuke comes to the source of the sound. He hides behind a tall cherry blossom tree, remembering the ninja skills his brother had taught him in one of their mini "training" sessions. Cautiously peeking from behind the tree, Sasuke comes across seeing a person huddled up in a ball, with their hands wrapped around their knees in a small clearing. The person sniffed a little, choking on their sobs every now and then.

The crying child is wearing a light orange summer dress with little flowers embroiled into the hem. Their blonde hair is down to their mid-neck, and the boy assumed that this person was about his age. The person's face was obscured because it was buried on their knees, but that did not seem to bother the young Uchiha.

"_This kid seems nice. Maybe they'll tell me what's wrong if I go ask,"_ he assumed quietly in his thoughts. With his decision made, Sasuke walked to where the crying child was and plotted down right in front of them till he was to their level.

"Hey, why are you crying?"

The person flinched by the sudden noise and shyly gazed upward.

The Uchiha stared. He'd never seen such bright hair; they seemed kissed by the sun, almost blessed by an angel. On the girl's plump cheeks were three whiskers marks, scarring but at the same time making up her face. Her eyes, full of brimming tears bore into Sasuke's own obsidian eyes and almost instantly he was lost. There were so many emotions in those bright blue eyes. Sadness and Sorrow. A lot of pain. And she looked so lost. Sasuke gasped. He did not know eyes could be that big, or that beautiful.

Cerulean eyes, like the color of a summer's sky itself, memorized him in their pool-like depths. With tears glazed over them, they looked like beautifully cut jewels.

"_She's kinda cute,"_ Sasuke thought while a hint of red started forming on his face.

"I'm l-lost, I-I'm lonely-y, and I-I can't find otou-otou-oto…WAHHH!" The blonde haired girl starts crying again, hands scrunched up into little balls as she wipes her flowing new tears away but was doing an unsuccessful job as more tears flow down to take their place.

The girl's small voice was sweet and childish and… sad. It was so sad that Sasuke couldn't help it. His pale hands went to the girl's scarred cheeks and wiped the tears clean. The blonde closed her eyes and allowed it to happen. Not only that, but her tears cease as she leaned into the touch trying to get more. Sasuke complied and simply caressed her cheeks like his mother had done with him so many times before. The dark haired young boy just kept the touch going, seeming in bliss… It did not seem to occur to Sasuke that he is comforting a girl he barely knew… in fact did not know at all. Though even if he did know, he could care less. Suddenly, a great idea came to Sasuke.

"Why don't I help you find your otou-san?" Sasuke suggested. He extended his hand out to her, waiting for it to be clasped with her own. The girl's eyes snapped open and widen as she gazed up at the dark haired boy. Her face had a surprised look to them, as if saying "why"? Then, a blooming smile appears on her face as she took hold of his hand. Sasuke pulled the blonde to her feet. "Come on," Sasuke said to the angelic girl, "let's go."

The smile on her face appeared to widen. She nodded her head and said, "Okay! Oh, by the way, my name is Naruto… Namikaze Naruto. What's yours?"

"Uchiha Sasuke."

* * *

"So how old are you anyway, Naruto? I'm seven."

"I'm six… but I'll be seven in October!"

Naruto and Sasuke have been looking for Naruto's father for a while now, up trees, behind bushes… They only started to talk to pass the time quicker, and that Naruto can not stand a quiet place for so long (about 5 minutes).

"…aru-chan! Naru-chan! Where are you?" A distant voice called out, getting the attentions of the two young children.

Naruto's head instantly snapped up at the familiarity of that voice. "That's otou-san!"

A look of happiness washed over Naruto's face. She turned towards the direction of the voice and was about to go, but then stops. Naruto faces downward to look at the ground, her bangs hiding the expression on her face. Bewilderment crosses Sasuke, wondering why Naruto is not running off to reunite with her father. _"I thought she wanted to find her otou-san. Wasn't that the reason why she was crying?"_

"What's wrong, Naruto? Don't you want to see your otou-san?" Naruto looks up to face him, a saddening look on her face. Sasuke's heart clenched painfully at the sight. No angel should ever have that look upon her face.

"I do! But,… I don't want to say goodbye! You've been so nice to me and…" Her voice trails off as she gazes downward. _"Great. My first best friend probably now thinks that I'm acting like some baby…"_

But unknown to Naruto, an idea popped up in Sasuke's mind.

"Wait right here for a minute!" Sasuke shouted as he ran into the depths of the forest.

"Eh…?" Naruto wondered by the sudden outburst. She watched as his retreating form disappeared into the canopies. Her otou-san is still calling her, but only in a different location now. She wanted to go to him, embrace him and letting him know that she is all right. But nether less, Naruto stayed rooted in her spot, waiting for Sasuke to return.

* * *

Silence.

The sun is starting to set, and Sasuke still has not returned yet. Naruto was getting tired of waiting. Her otou-san's voice is starting to fade bit by bit as the sun sinks lower and lower.

"He's late…" Sadness begins to overcome Naruto once more as realization hit her: Sasuke is not coming back.

"_Maybe he went back home…"_ Naruto plops down on the grass and starts tearing up again. "Uhh…"

"_We won't see each other again, will we?" _Naruto thought sadly. Suddenly, rustling sounds from the bushes crackles from behind her. Naruto gasped, the sounds making her jump at bit. A frightened look carves upon her face. Naruto spins around to find...Sasuke!

Sasuke looks as if he is hiding something behind his back. He had a questioning look on his face when he sees red puffy eyes on Naruto. "Were you crying?"

"Eh…" Naruto was embarrassed to be caught again by the same person when she was crying. She sits up quickly to face Sasuke and shakes her head frantically back and forth.

"Really?" Sasuke, sweatdropping, was not completely convinced by the answer he gotten. Ignoring that fact, he reached out and grabs Naruto's left wrist. "Here!"

Sasuke slides a ring on her ring finger. Well, a dandelion that has been tied at the stem to look like a ring.

"Uwah…" Naruto was lost for words as she gazes down at the gift she received. A light blush appears on her cheeks.

"I'll marry you!" Sasuke declares.

"Marry?" Naruto seems to be a bit confused.

"Kaa-san said that if you get married, you'll stay with the other person forever."

"Forever?"

"Yeah, forever!" Sasuke started to panic, thinking that Naruto does not like his present since her face is facing downward again. He tried to reassure her. "Rings are supposed to be more pretty-looking, but since I heard they're expensive, I'll get you one when we become adults!"

Naruto still had her head cast down. "Adults? So even if we become adults, we'll be together forever?"

"Of course! …You don't like it?"

A tint of red can be seen on her cheeks, but Sasuke did not know if they were from the ring he had given her or from the crying incident. As if reading his mind, Naruto said, "No, I do!"

She then lifted her head up and kissed Sasuke sweetly on the lips. After they parted, both children are blushing scarlet. Sasuke covered his mouth with both of his hands, face as red as a tomato. Naruto smiled cutely, eyes closed as to not give away the emotions racing through her.

"_That was my first kiss,"_ they both thought. Naruto clasped her left hand, which was where Sasuke had placed the ring, and cradles it like it is the most precious thing to her.

"Arigatou! It's a promise!" Naruto then ran off to the direction of her tou-san's voice, hoping he has not left yet. Sasuke stares at Naruto as he watches her run off. The blush is starting to dim a bit, but it stubbornly still holds its place upon his pale cheeks. A daze look is plastered on Sasuke's face.

"So otouto, had fun today?"

Sasuke snaps out of his delusion and turns around to face…

"Aniki!"

* * *

Itachi and Sasuke were now walking home from the forest. The sun was already shining its last few rays into the sky, creating hues of autumn colors. As they turned another corner, Itachi can not help but noticed that his little brother has a happy smile on his face while swinging his arms to and fro at his sides. Sasuke is also not throwing a tantrum at him for ditching him in the forest, which perplexed Itachi. Usually, he would start getting a fit and annoy poor Itachi to death. Something had definitely made his little brother very, very happy.

"So, who was that girl you were with, otouto?" Itachi asked, wanting to know who this person was that had made his brother this gleeful.

Sasuke, who stopped his arm swinging and dropped his grin for a milder look, looked at his brother with an expression that seems to say in an innocent way 'Why do you want to know?' Then replying in a smooth content, he said, "Her name is Namikaze Naruto."

Sasuke said her name as if they were magic. He likes how her name easily glides off his tongue, like how a piece to a puzzle effortlessly fits into place.

"_So, otouto has been with the Yondaime's daughter,"_ Itachi mused to himself.

Giving an amusing smirk, Itachi turned to face his little brother. "It looks like my otouto has a little girlfriend."

"She's not my girlfriend!" Sasuke suddenly shouted.

Itachi lifted a dark brow. "Oh?"

Itachi thought it was humorous his little brother could get worked up over a little accusation like that. He could not wait for his comeback.

"Yeah! She's my wife!"

Itachi, not expecting an answer like that, almost tripped and face-planted to the ground. Regaining his composure before anyone sees him in a very unlike Itachi-way, he said, "Y-your what?"

"I said she's my **wife**," Sasuke said again a bit slower, thinking his brother does not understand what he is saying while putting emphasis on the word "wife."

"I married her today. I even gave her a ring as proof!" Sasuke boasted like it was no big deal and the greatest thing in the world.

Meanwhile, Itachi was sweating. _"How am I going to tell okaa-san about this? I was supposed to be watching over him today!"_

* * *

**Just to let you guys know, I got that cute little SasuNaru bit from a doujinshi I read called "A Gentle Promise". It might be a little different, but it will connect for my whole story idea.**

**And I won't be updating frequently like I want to since I have school and stuff. But I'll try my best to update as soon as I have time.**

**Plz leave a review by pressing the pretty little button down there. Thx. **


	2. Returning to Konoha

**Author's Notes: **Thank you for all of those who have reviewed! Sorry it took so long. I kinda had a writer's block… Anyway, this chapter is time skipped 5 years after my last chapter (meaning that Naruto and the rest of the soon-to-be-genin are all 12). The flashback will explain why. And just to tell you guys, I'm not completely satisfied with this chapter. I had a hard time with this one.

**Summary:**She looks up to gaze at his coal obsidian eyes as he gazes downward at her enchanting sky blue eyes. They both thought, _"Is this love?"_ Who says opposites can't attract? SasuFemNaru, ItaFemKyuu, LeeSaku, NejiTen, ShikaTema, KibaHina, ChouIno

**Pairings:**SasuFemNaru, ItaFemKyuu, LeeSaku, NejiTen, ShikaTema, KibaHina, ChouIno

**Warnings:** OOC-ness, language

**Disclaimer:**I do not own Naruto

* * *

**Kesshite Wasuremasu  
**_by Aesura_

_**Returning to Konoha**_

* * *

The sun was shining and the birds were chirping. The forest was brimming with afternoon noise as two travelers tread through the dense canopy. One of the travelers, an old, white-haired man with red painted streaks going down each of his eyes looked at his young blonde traveling companion as she runs ahead of him excitedly.

"Oi! Naruto! Don't run that far off!"

Said Naruto paused to turned and give her sensei a look of irritation. "Then move your ass and maybe you won't be lagging behind, Ero-sennin! Besides, I haven't seen otou-san in five years and I'm not getting any younger here!"

The 12-year-old Naruto turned around again, but started to walk in a slower pace so her sensei could catch up.

Her soft blonde hair reached down to her neck, layered up a bit in some places with bangs that reached her cheek bones, framing her face. She had sky blue eyes that would always sparkle with radiance. The three whisker marks on either side of her cheeks gives her the impression of a cute kitsune.

She possesses a very feminine body, developed a bit at the chest. Her appearance made it seem as though she was weak, but many could attest that was false. Her body was lightly muscled but toned well with all her training but for some reason even though she would spend countless hours in the sun, she always had a light peach colored skin tone. Her lips were full, pink, and soft. Her hands were slender as well, made for the movement of a blade. All in all she looked beautiful in an elegant and graceful sort of way.

She adorned a simple black shirt underneath her orange and blue jacket. The jacket consist of a wide, horizontal blue band going from the near mid-section of the back to the white tuffs of fur on the collar. There was also a smaller strip of blue on the bottom hem of the jacket. The red spiral, the insignia of the Namikaze clan, is in the middle of the jacket, seeming to be the connection of the two opposite colors. Another spiral, this time a tan color, is attached to the upper part of the left sleeve. Two brown little poles corresponds each other on either side of the spiral. A string comes out at the bottom of the two, connecting together at the little white pole, slightly smaller than the other two, with a red tip at the end of it. The ends of the sleeves were rolled up a bit, since Naruto claimed that they were too long.

Orange capri pants hugged on to her lower body, the ends of the pants silted a bit so the bottom portion flares out. The standard weapon pouch hung on the back of her hip, while her kunai holster was fastened around her right thigh, white bandages wrapped behind the holster to provide comfort. She also wore the traditional ninja blue sandals on her small feet.

Jiraiya growled darkly at the use of _that_ name. "I told you to stop calling me that!"

"Yeah, yeah. I heard you, Ero-sennin," Naruto said nonchalantly while waving her hand like trying to swat away a fly.

Jiraiya just grumbled from the lack of respect. He sighed and stared at the back of Naruto, who is now a few paces ahead of him. _"I can't believe it pass five years since Minato asked me to do this favor for him…"_

_Minato was pacing around back and forth angrily and impatiently. 'Where the hell is he?' the active Hokage thought incredulously. _

_It has been an hour since he ordered a jounin to tell his sensei, Jiraiya, to come to the hospital immediately and he still isn't here yet._

_The Yondaime sadly glanced over again at his seven-year-old daughter who is now recuperating in the hospital bed. Her breathing's stable as she sleeps contently. The major wounds are wrapped up in bandages, the minor cuts and bruises already healed thanks to the Kyuubi. _

'_This is the sixth assassination attempt on her yet. If Kakashi hadn't shown up like he did, then Naruto might have…'_

_His thoughts were cut off by the entrance of a familiar being._

"_Jiraiya-sensei! I told you to come here an hour ago! Where the hell were you?" Minato shouted, his voice bellowing around the room._

"_Calm down gaki," he said while putting his hands up as if to defend himself from the fuming Hokage. "I just got caught up on my re-"_

_Jiraiya was cut off as he glanced over at the condition Naruto was in. _

"_Kami, Minato. What happen to Naruto?" Jiraiya asked while concern and shock appeared on his face._

"_Another assassination attempt." Minato said bluntly._

"_Kuso. Isn't that the six-"_

"_Yes, I know! The sixth one!" he snapped, a bit aggravated._

_Only the beeping from the heart monitor is heard in the now silent-filled room._

"…_Sorry sensei. I shouldn't have lost my temper on you like that.."_

"_Don't bother with the apologizes, Minato," Jiraiya said, knowing his student didn't initially mean it. He walked over to the sleeping blonde, an unreadable look upon his face._

"_What are you going to do about this problem?"_

"_Anou…, that's why I called you here. I know that you're going to be leaving to go to another village tomorrow, so could you take Naruto along with you? She needs to get away from the pain inflicted on her, before she's permanently scarred for life."_

_Jiraiya was about to protest that the kid is just going to get in the way of his "research", until he saw the serious and pleading look in his eyes._

_He sighed in defeat. "Fine, fine. We'll be back in a few years, just before the genin graduation exam."_

_Suddenly, a moan diverted both the shinobis' attention to the source of the noise. Naruto started to stir, slowly opening her crystal-blue eyes. Carefully pulling herself to a sitting position, she turned to face her father while rubbing her eyes tiredly. "Otou-san? …What happened?"_

_Relief washes over the Hokage's face as he rushes over to hug his only child in a tight embrace, but not too tight for her wounds to open up. "Naru-chan, I'm sorry. I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you when you needed me. I'm sorry.."_

_Naruto, with a bewildered expression on her face, hesitantly hugged her otou-san back, her question remaining unanswered._

_Jiraiya smiled faintly at the scene in front of him. 'Still kind hearted as always, eh Minato?'_

_He then snapped out of his thoughts by feeling someone's eyes gazing at him. He directed his awareness to a pair of innocent (and confused) looking eyes._

"_Jiraiya-jiji? What are you doing here?"_

"_Anou, ..your father and I thought that it would be a good idea if you come and travel with me for a while.I'm leaving tomorrow to see all of the big countries in the east and…"_

_He stopped his rambling when he heard a sniffle sound emitted from the little blonde. Her eyes started to water up, which make them look like those of a lost puppy who's trying to say, 'take me home, feed me and cuddle me to death!' Very irresistible._

_Naruto pulled away from her father's hug to look up at him with those impossibly wide blue eyes. "…Otou-san, are you really going to leave me?.."_

_Minato visibly flinched. The eyes gazing back at him are the same eyes he could never find it in himself to say the answer to that will hurt his dear Naru-chan._

"_No, no! I'm not going to leave you. It's just that…"_

_Jiraiya could see that his student needed some help in the situation he's in. He mentally sighed. _

_Even though Minato, Konoha's current young Hokage, was renowned for his famous Hiraishin no Jutsu, created the Rasengan, and defeated the Kyuubi no Kitsune, he still can be reduced to pudding when it comes to dealing with his daughter!_

"_He wants you to be safe so that no one can hurt you, Naruto. Your otou-san is very busy with his Hokage duties so he can't be there for you the way he wants to be. So you see why he has to do this, right Naruto?"_

_Minato throws his sensei a thankful look for his help out of that predicament. Naruto just stares at the white sheets on the hospital bed, an expression of disdain written upon her frowning face. "..I guess…"_

"_Come on, gaki. It'll be fun! I'll teach you new things and even train you to be a great shinobi like me!" Jiraiya said, thinking that it might light up her mood. _

_The blue-eyed girl was quiet as she thought about it. She had never actually gone anywhere outside of the village before. Maybe it would be fun. _

"_You won't leave me right? And no one's going to be mean to me are they?" _

_The sannin chuckled. "Of course I won't leave you! And the people in the other places faaaar away won't know you, so they won't be mean."_

_After a moment's silence, Naruto looks up at the sannin, showing off her foxy grin._

"_Okay! Let's go Ero-jiji!"_

_Naruto just kept smiling, unaware of the expressions etched on both of the men's faces._

"_What?" Minato was the one who broke the silence. 'How does my Naru-chan know about Jiraiya and his pervertedness?'_

"_What what, otou-san?" Naruto asked, cocking her head a bit like a cute little puppy._

"_W-why did y-you called Jiraiya-sensei a p-pervert?"__The Yondaime stuttered out._

"_Isn't that his nickname?"_

_More silence._

"…_Who told you that?"_

"_I heard the pretty ladies saying it when he got caught looking at them at the bath house!"_

_The older blonde took a few deep breaths to settle his nerves, though it wasn't helping much._

"…_Naru-chan." Minato's anger is about to reach its height now. "Why were you at the bath house?"_

"_Oh. That's easy! Ero-jiji brought me there! He said that he needed me to help him with his research and… otou-san?"_

_Minato had placed his hands over Naruto's ears, so she won't have to hear what he has to say to the so-called 'Ero-jiji'._

_Meanwhile, Jiraiya was backing away, slowly heading towards the door. He had never seen his student so angry before._

'_Almost there,' Jiraiya thought, his hand only a few inches away towards his freedom._

_Two inches._

_One inch._

_Five centimeters._

_One centimeter._

"_Jiraiya-sensei." Minato spoke calmly._

_Jiraiya flinched. He was almost talking too calmly for his liking and just like his name implies, it's 'the calm before the storm.'_

_Slowly turning around (while shaking a bit), he instantly regretted it as he locked eye contact with a pair of sharp narrowed eyes. You can actually see a storm raging up inside those two murderous-looking eyes._

"_Why the fucking hell did you use my daughter to help you with your so-called research?"_

"_Anou,… you see… it's like this… ehhh…" He could not think of any excuse that won't have him murdered or facing excusal pain, so instead he sped over quickly to Naruto (on the other side of her bed just in cast he needs to use her as a shield) to try and persuade her that he was not "using" her to conduct his "research."_

"_Now now, Naruto. My name's Jiraiya. I'm the legendary ninja known far and wide! The one and only, the great Sannin Jiraiya!"_

_Naruto just stared blankly at her supposed jiji. She did not hear anything (do to the hands still placed on her ears) except the mumbling of whatever he said._

"_Ero-jiji!" Naruto answered cheerfully._

_The man twitched. "Baka! I'm not a pervert; I'm a hermit!"_

_Naruto concentrated more at what "Ero-jiji" is saying. She only heard, "Uawa! E'um umn mn pervert; E'em aum hermit!"_

_Naruto's face became a cheeky grin. "Ero-sennin!"_

_The Toad Sannin twitched. "I'm not a perverted hermit! Oh wait, yes I am, but don't call me that!-"_

_Suddenly, he stopped his ranting, sensing a strong wave of killer intent directed towards him._

_He advert his eyes to the source, only to come at the sight of a pissed off looking Yondaime (who already took his palms off of Naruto's ears) and a charged-up Rasengan._

_Jiraiya started desperately looking for the quickest way out. 'The door? No. Minato's Shunshin no Jutsu would catch me before I even come to close range of the door. The only option is…' He took a slight glance behind him. A small smirk appeared on his face._

_Jiraiya quickly turns around and crashed through the glass window, nearly avoiding an angry blonde's Rasengan to his sorry hide. Minato stood that the spot where his so-called sensei was just seconds ago._

"_YOU'RE NOT GETTING AWAY THAT EASILY YOU ASSHOLE!"_

_He charged up another Rasengan again and sped off through the already broken window, a trail of yellow flash lingering behind him. The sudden gust of wind knocked over a vase of flowers, making a whole bunch of noise, crash and all._

_Naruto just stared out the shattered window in bewilderment. Around her, there was a mess of water, flowers, and shards of what used to be a purple vase._

_Immediately the door swung open and several ninjas came pouring in, like shadows poured from a cup. About five or six circled her, all hidden by white porcelain masks that were designed to look like animals._

_These weren't just your ordinary shinobi... they were ANBU, the best of the best. When they did not sense any danger, two of them bent down and quickly cleared the mess without fuss._

_Appearing at Naruto's side, a tall ANBU ninja with a dog mask turned his head around so that he could size up the confused-looking blonde. Behind the slit-like eyeholes Naruto could see the dim outline of a dark opal, light catching off the surface like a cat's eye. She cocked her head to the side like what a bird would do, as he smoothed the sheets on Naruto's bed. _

_"... Well it seems that you're awake, that's good. Hokage-sama will be pleased."_

_The blonde swore that she saw one eye close into a happy crescent moon.._

_Naruto knew who this person is, the one who he considered an uncle…_

"_Kakashi-oji?..." She wanted to ask him why her otou-san jumped through the window to chase after Ero-senin with a glowing-looking ball in his hand, but couldn't find the words to say it in._

_A gloved hand reached for the mask and pulled it off, revealing the copy-nin, Hatake Kakashi, same as ever, with his headband slanted and covering his right eye, and the black facemask hiding his identity._

_He just patted the blonde's head affectionately, thinking that she's probably wondering why she's in the hospital. "It's all right Naruto, there's nothing to worry about…"_

_He stopped what he was saying to the young Namikaze heiress, his gaze falling on the shattered window that had a hole in it._

"… _Naruto, how did that hole got into the window?"_

"_Oh, Ero-sennin jumped out through it, making a big crashing sound, and then otou-san chased after him with a pretty blue ball in his hand!" Naruto said in amazement as she spread her arms out into the air and back down to her sides as to pictured "the big crash"._

'_Ero-sennin?' Kakashi thought of in amusement the nickname a little 7-year-old gave to one of the legendary sannin._

"_Hey, Kakashi-oji? Can I ask you a question?" Naruto asked, snapping him out of his thoughts. Her voice dropped to a whisper, feeling like someone had pulled a plug out of her and drained her energy dry. She cupped her hands around her mouth so to make it that only Kakashi could hear her._

_A deep chuckle escaped from the dog-ANBU at Naruto's attempt to restrict her said question only to him. Getting down to her level, he leaned his ear in as the blonde whispers her question quietly so only he could hear._

_Feeling a sweatdrop drop down his head, the silver-haired Joann sheepishly rubbed the base of his neck after the question was said. "Err..."_

_The other shinobi sniggered quietly to themselves, the famous Sharingan Kakashi smiling pleadingly to the blonde while flapping his hand up and down to stop the Uzumaki from asking more future questions._

"_Well Naruto, the reason your father called Jiraiya an asshole is…"_

"_Sigh. If Minato ever heard his daughter's language, then he'll probably have that damn Rasengan of his blast me into oblivion. I'd barely escaped his Rasengan last time…"_

He shivered at the very thought. Trying to rid himself of that scenario, he looked up to divert his attention, only to see the tall, wooden Konoha gates.

"This is it! We've finally arrived!" he said, ebulliently. He then looked down at Naruto, only to find her already standing in front of the guards a few feet ahead of him, most likely stopped by the two shinobi.

_"She's so impatient. That stubborn baka..."_

He marched up to the gate and until the guards stopped him too.

"Names and purpose of visit, please."

There was a moment of silence.

"Names? You don't recognize my handsome face? I am the great Jiraiya! One of the great Legendary Sennin! And this gaki here is Namikaze Naruto, the daughter of the Yondaime! How can you not know who we are?" cried Jiraiya dramatically.

Naruto just looked at her sensei, her eye twitching a bit. _"Ero-sennin can be so… weird sometimes…"  
_  
The guards' eyes widened. One spoke up, frantically.

"J-Jiraiya-sama, N-Naruto-sama! We apologize for this blunder. Please, forgive us! We haven't seen you two for four or five years around here."

Jiraiya scowled and replied, "Just let us pass you morons."

"Y-Yes, Jiraiya-sama!"

They unlatched the gates and stood aside, letting Jiraiya and Naruto proceeded onward into the village. The guards looked at Naruto's retreating form in awe.

"So, the Yondaime's daughter has finally returned…"

* * *

Namikaze Minato, Konoha's yellow flash, and Yondaime Hokage sat at his desk writing up some contracts. His eyes looked blearily from the hundreds of paperwork his eyes had endured.

The Fourth looked at the contract he held in his hand, checking over the terms and conditions. The contract was written in a neat hand, with the Fire Country's emblem on the top. He picked up a quill and dipped it in ink before he signed it on the bottom. Two hundred eighty-five down.

"Eh… How many more papers are left?…"

He glanced over at the two-foot pile of papers lying on his desk still. No wonder Sarutobi had been so eager to slap that damn Kage hat on his head.

"I don't want to be Hokage anymore." Minato mumbled as he slammed his head on his desk. It was at that moment a secretary laid a two inch thick folder on his desk.

"Hokage-sama, you have two visitors waiting for you." The secretary informed before exiting the office.

The Yondaime groggily lifted his head from his desk. "Hm, wonder who they could-"

"OTOU-SAN!"

The blonde was tackled by an orange blur, his paperwork scattering out on to the floor by the impact of the wind.

"Oof! What the—Naru-chan?" He was surprised by the sudden appearance of his daughter, who was now hugging him in a tight embrace.

Naruto twitched at the use of that name her father used when she was a little kid. She let go of her father and stood up straight and crossed her arms on her chest, directing a full-on pout at him.

"Otou-saaannn! Stop using that name! I'm not a little kid anymore." Naruto whines.

The Yondaime sighed, a loving smile graced his lips, as he takes in how much Naruto has grown.

"No matter how much you grown up, you'll always be my little girl." He lifted up his hand and ruffled up Naruto's hair. If it was even possible, Naruto pouted even more.

"Well, well. Isn't this a happy reunion?"

Both blondes turned towards the direction of the voice. Jiraiya stood at the center of the office, a couple of feet from the Hokage's desk. Both of his arms were crossed as he wore an amusing grin at the scene in front of him.

"Jiraiya-sensei! When did you and Naru-chan get back?"

"Just a few minutes ago," Jiraiya answered. He glanced around the room.

"_This place hasn't changed much,"_ he noted.

Everything was still in place as he last remembered it. There was his old student's desk, the bookshelves, and all the old scrolls lying around. He noticed a few new pictures on the wall, maybe one or two new pieces of furniture, but otherwise everything was there.

"Anyways, I just thought it was around time I brought her back here so she could take the Genin exam."

"I see. Well glad you remember still."

"Oh come on, Minato! You actually think that I'll forget?"

He only got a stern stare from his prized student.

"Ahhhh… well, I've got some research to do if I want to finish the rest of my new book," said Jiraiya enthusiastically, averting his eyes from the stare.

"I wonder if any new bathhouses were built," he mumbled to himself, as he jumped off the balcony and in a puff of smoke, he vanquished.

Minato sighed disapprovingly. His old sensei hadn't changed at all. He is still the perverted, arrogant baka today as he was 12 years ago.

"Has Ero-sennin always been like that?"

His daughter's question broke his line of thought. He turned towards her direction again, seeing an angry vein on his daughter's head from Jiraiya's antics.

"I'm afraid so. He's been like that since I first met him."

"Ne, ne, otou-san! You won't believe all the cool jutsus Ero-sennin taught me!" Naruto began, sounding thoroughly excited about telling her father how strong she got and completely forgetting about Ero-sennin and his perverted-ness.

As she spoke, the girl recalled several events from her travels with Ero-sennin. "There was that awesome tornado jutsu!"

"_**FUUTON: SENTEN GUFUU NO JUTSU"**_

_Naruto remembered a powerful burst of wind forming into a tornado after her sensei finished the required hand seals. The jutsu rushed towards a defenseless tree and ripped it into pieces._

"And also that weird water shield jutsu?"

_**"NINPOU SUITON: SUIJINHEKI"**_

_Two pillars of water rose from a nearby lake and quickly snaked its way towards Jiraiya, destroying any threat that got in its way. The water gathered around Jiraiya forming a protective dome that prevented any projectile from hurting him._

"Oh! Oh! And that big wave jutsu!"

_**"SUITON: SUISHOUHA"**_

_Jiraiya announced from inside the water formation. The column then broke down sending massive amounts of water to flood the entire field, taking out all one thousand trees in its path._

"Or that-"

"Naru-chan. I'm sure there's time to tell me that later when we get home. But if you don't hurry, you're going to miss your Genin exam." Minato said, a sweatdrop and weak smile appearing on his face from his daughter's talkative personality, which is now making her late for her first day at the academy.

"WHAT? I'M GOING TO BE LATE!" Naruto shouted, running towards the quickest exit: the window.

"I'll send you an escort-"

"No, it's okay otou-san. I'm sure I can find my way. Besides, there'll only slow me down."

With that said, Naruto leaped out of the window and sped off towards the academy.

Minato chuckled lightly to himself. "I see you haven't changed at all too, Naru-chan."

He was about to get started with the dreaded paperwork, when he noticed that none of them were on his desk anymore. He stood up at leaned over his desk, wondering if all of them had vanished into thin air. (He wishes).

Minato's jaw hit the floor.

All of his papers were scattered on the ground!

"WHAT DID I DO TO DESERVED THIS?"

* * *

The laughter of children her age could be heard all around her. Naruto walked into the school campus, watching the younger kids run around, playing tag or whatever children of ninja did. It was a little before 3 p.m. in the afternoon and the sun was out in the sky, shining warmly upon the village of Konoha.

"Whew. Made it on time," she exhaled.

She looked around at the unfamiliar scenery. The blonde was now somewhat lost. Naruto had never gone to the academy before, so she did not know which way lead to where. Not that she would ever need to go to the academy. She probably learned more about being a shinobi from traveling on the road with Ero-sennin than what she would have learned from the academy.

"Ehh, maybe I should have had gotten an escort…" Naruto mumbled to herself, regretting that she did not take her otou-san's offer.

The bell sounded as the students stopped what they were doing and headed toward the main building.

"_Guess I should just follow the older looking kids,"_ she thought.

Naruto was just about to follow the other students until she spotted a man around his mid-20s a few yards from her.

He was wearing the standard chuunin attire, green vest and all. His neck-length silver hair is covered with his hitai-ate, tied around his head like a bandana.

"_Or maybe I can ask that guy. He looks like a teacher."_

"Hey mister! Uhmmm, do you know where they're having the genin exam is?" Naruto asked the man.

The man, to his comrades, was known as Mizuki. He looked at the girl with surprise, before recovering and answering.

"Go to the main building and go straight down the hall. When you get to the end, turn to your left."

"Thanks, mister." Naruto said, running towards the building at a fast pace, ready to pass the genin exam with flying colors.

"_So, the Kyuubi brat has returned,"_ thought Mizuki. A wicked smirk tugged at his face as he formulated a plan to finally get rid of the Kyuubi nuisance and to get the scroll he sought.

Students who were late could see Mizuki standing in the middle of the playground, smirking to himself before a puff of smoke appeared around him, showing that the chuunin teacher had disappeared once the smoke had cleared.

* * *

Iruka looked at the scene before him. The twelve-year-olds were in the classroom, gossiping and talking loudly.

"_I feel a migraine coming on,"_ he thought, sighing to himself.

"QUIET!" he shouted, rubbing his temples.

The class immediately stopped talking as the students fumbled to their seats to wait for the test to commence. The rows of students watched Iruka intently. He let out a sigh of relief and gazed at his students.

POOF! A puff of smoke appeared beside Iruka.

"What took you?" Iruka asked the figure, which was apparently, Mizuki. His comrade just smiled at him and replied, "Just making sure the students got to class."

His comment was interrupted when there was a knock on the door. A blonde-haired girl slid the door open and walked into the class.

The resemblance was striking to the Yondaime's. Soft blond hair curved around her angelic face in delicate strands, bordering her beautiful cerulean blue eyes that gazes intently ahead. He felt his eyes widen by the distinctness of her appearance.

She is truely the daughter of the Yondaime.

Smiling slightly at the girl, he bowed at the show of respect.

_"So the rumors are true. Namikaze Naruto has returned to Konoha."_ Iruka thought.

"Welcome Naruto-san. I'm Iruka-sensei. This," Iruka acknowledge, pointing to Mizuki, "is Mizuki-sensei. He will be your other proctor for today's exam. Would you please introduce youself to your fellow classmates."

The girl turned to the class and proclaimed in a confident voice that was loud enough for everybody to hear in the class, "My name is Namikaze Naruto."


	3. The Love of a Father

**Summary:**She looks up to gaze at his coal obsidian eyes as he gazes downward at her enchanting sky blue eyes. They both thought, _"Is this love?"_ Who says opposites can't attract? SasuFemNaru… MORE PAIRINGS INSIDE

**Pairings:**SasuFemNaru, ItaFemKyuu, LeeSaku, NejiTen, ShikaTema, KibaHina, ChouIno

**Warnings:** OOC-ness, language

**Disclaimer:**I do not own Naruto

* * *

**Kesshite Wasuremasu  
**_by Aesura_

_**The Love of a Father**_

* * *

"My name is Namikaze Naruto."

Whispers erupted in the class as the students discussed amongst themselves of the sudden notice of the blonde joining their class. Who joins a class that's about to take the Genin exam?

"Okay, Naruto-san. You can sit next to…" Iruka scanned the classroom to locate a vacant seat. "Ah, Hinata!"

Hinata squeaked at the sudden call of her name.

"Hinata, please raise your hand so Naruto-san can know where you are."

Hinata nervously raised her hand, lowering her head a bit in embarrassment as everybody's gaze shifted to her momentarily.

"_Hinata, huh? Man, she really has low self-confidence."_ Naruto makes a mental note to help her fix that problem later.

As Naruto began walking up the steps to the back row of the class, a certain Uchiha's dark eyes followed the blonde's every step, sparkling in interest, and in… recognition?

Iruka raised an eyebrow in awareness. Never before has the young Uchiha shown notice to anyone. He just glares at them until they go away.

Iruka hoped that Naruto would be able to drag the Uchiha out of his arrogant shell. They do seem like complete foils of each other, both looks and personality wise, like yin and yang.

Now that everyone is seated down, Iruka started with his speech.

"We will now start the final exam. The subjects will be Kawarimi no Jutsu, Henge, and Bunshin no Jutsu. If your name is called, come to the testing room next door."

Iruka gave his students one last encouraging smile, as he and Mizuki turned and headed towards the examination room.

One by one, students went into the room, nervously. But there were still a large number of students to go. They were all gathered in their small groups, anxiously waiting to hear their names.

Naruto got bored and started observing her classmates, determining what their characteristics are like.

One girl, Haruno Sakura, was with a group of girls who were all arguing who would be the first to marry the class heart throb, Uchiha Sasuke.

This Sasuke character, Naruto noticed, was sitting in the second row alone quietly, but he had a scowl on his face and was glaring morosely at all who dared encroach upon his territory. But this only made him more tempting to the girls. For some reason, she thought that she met this Uchiha boy before, but shrugged it off.

"_Maybe it's just my imagination."_

Naruto's pondering was cut off by a stuttering sound emitting from someone beside her. She shifted her position to come in face with the shy Hyuuga girl.

Once Hinata noticed that the person she was trying to say hi to was looking at her, she quickly gazed downward while pressing her two index fingers together.

"_Scratch that. She needs help NOW."_

"Konnichiwa, Hinata. My name's Naruto. Nice to meet you!" Naruto said cheerfully.

"O-oh! It-t's n-nice t-to meet-t y-you, N-naruto-san-n." Hinata greeted unsuccessfully in a timid voice.

"Hinata, could you please drop the '-san'? I don't really like the formality."

"G-gomen…" Hinata looked down again, feeling like she has disappointed yet another person again.

"_I guess I'm insignificant like everyone saids… Otou-san… Neji-nii-san…"_

"Hello? Hinata, didn't you hear me?"

A hand was waving in front of Hinata's face, snapping her out of her thoughts.

"G-gomen, N-naruto. W-what was i-it agai-in?"

"I said, 'Do you want to be friends?'"

A shocked look appeared on Hinata's face as she turned to face Naruto. Someone wanted to be friends with her, a weakling like her? All she could say was…

"..D-Doushite?"

Naruto gave her a sheepish grin, thinking that she was just surprised by the sudden abruptness.

"Anou…, you seem like a nice person, and I really want a friend, since this is my first time here at the Academy and all. So what do you say?"

Smiling timidly, she answered, "H-hai."

The sheepish grin turned into a foxy one as she took Hinata's hand into hers and shook them both up and down. "Friends!"

Hinata smiled along with her new friend. Naruto can really be to-the-point sometimes.

"Namikaze Naruto! It's your turn now," said Iruka, popping his head through the examination door.

Naruto looked up and replied, "Hai."

She stood up and turned towards Hinata.

"Wish me luck, Hinata-chan." She winked while giving her a thumbs-up.

"G-good luck." She said back, almost too softly to hear, as Naruto journeyed down the steps to the testing room.

* * *

Naruto now found herself standing at the middle of the Academy testing room where the graduation examination was being held.

Iruka-sensei and Mizuki-sensei, were sitting behind a table on the far end of the room. Placed neatly over the table were dozens of leaf hite-ates, the thing that Naruto had been long fantasizing of having and the mark of her first step towards fulfilling her dream of becoming Hokage.

"Alright Naruto-san, for the graduation exam I first want you to perform the Kawarimi no Jutsu," instructed Iruka. "Begin!"

"**KAWARIMI NO JUTSU"**

The two proctors watched as Naruto switched places with a wooden log and back.

"Okay, good job on the Kawarimi jutsu, Naruto-san. Next is the Henge."

"**HENGE"**

As soon as the smoke cleared, Iruka saw a perfect replica of himself standing a few feet away from the proctor desk.

"Excellent transformation, Naruto-san. For your final task, I want you to create two clones," Iruka said, clearly impressed at the progressing talents of his blonde student. Though Iruka had a sneaky suspicion that these jutsus barely scratched the surface of her abilities.

"_Heh, you're going to be surprise at this, Iruka-sensei,"_ thought Naruto. She then started to gather chakra and executed a string of hand seals.

"**KAGE BUSHIN NO JUTSU"**

Just as Naruto has expected, Iruka was very much surprised after hearing the name of the jutsu.

"_Kage bunshin? That's a jounin-level ninjutsu! Did Naruto-san already master that jutsu at such a young age?"_ thought Iruka.

He was anxiously waiting for the white cloud of smoke that erupted shortly after Naruto announced the skill to fade away and see for himself.

After a short moment of waiting, all the smoke had faded away revealing three Narutos, the clones being perfect replicas of herself.

"Congratulations Naruto-san, you passed!"

Naruto gave him her foxy grin as she dismissed her clone. _"Good thing Ero-sennin taught me that jutsu, or else I would've failed that part!"_

She walked up to Iruka-sensei, getting the hite-ate presented from his hand.

Tying it on her forehead, the traditional spot of where the hite-ates should go, she turned around and walked out of the testing room, proud at herself for her accomplishment.

"_Wait till otou-san finds out! He'll be so proud of me! Maybe he'll take me to __Ichiraku's as a celebration!"_ Naruto thought happily as her smile widens at the memories of the many times her otou-san has taken her to her favorite ramen stand when she was young.

Amid undetected by Iruka, Mizuki was silently seething inside by the performance of the Kyuubi container.

"_Damn, that Kyuubi brat passed the test. Heh, no matter. I'll still get what I want in the end…"_

* * *

Outside the Ninja Academy, newly graduated students were talking among themselves, laughter and congratulations wavering through the air.

Their parents were gathered with their kids too, praising them and patting their child on the back.

"I'm so proud of you!"

"Good job! It's something I would expect from my child."

"Congratulations on graduating. Mom is going to fix you something nice tonight."

Those were few of the praises Naruto heard from where she was sitting, at the wooden swing under the tree, just a few yards away from the crowd.

She had a crestfallen look on her face, her once vibrant blue eyes now a bleak dull in the shadows of the tree.

Naruto lightly swung back and forth on the swing, one foot motioning the rhythm as tiny squeaking sounds emitted from the swing. She looked away from the praises, from the smiles, from it all…

"_Where's otou-san?… Why isn't he here yet?… He didn't forget to come… did he?"_

Naruto shook that unbelievable thought out of her head vigorously. _"Of course he didn't! He knew this was an important day for me! ..But…"_

She slowly glanced upward at the now depleting crowd. Hinata had already left with her father. Hell, even that loner Sasuke's family showed up.

Naruto saw one of Sasuke's family members, who looks so much like him, poke him on the forehead. Sasuke shot that person a light glare while rubbing the spot where he poked, but said person just look at him, with a ghost of a smile.

Her hands clenched on the rope swing, turning her knuckles white. Naruto then heard two ladies whispering from the crowd.

"Hey, isn't that girl the…" the lady whispered to her friend.

"Yeah, she's the daughter of the Yondaime!"

"I heard she passed the test with flying colors, and even performed a jutsu beyond her years."

"That's just as expected of the Hokage-sama's daughter. She's bound to surpass even her father. He must be so proud of her."

That last sentence did it.

Naruto felt a not-so-familiar sensation creeping into the corners of her eyes. She hadn't cried in over five years.

"_What the hell? ..Che, damn it.. I shouldn't be acting like this…"_

She quickly rubbed her eyes with the palm of her hand and growled. She would not allow herself to cry. Nothing could make her cry again, ever.

Then jumping out of her seat, Naruto disappeared, leaving the swing vacant as it sways back and forth.

But unknown to Naruto or anyone else, a pair of devious eyes from a certain silver-haired man watched her movements from a distance, then shortly disappeared afterwards.

* * *

The Yondaime sat wearily at his desk, a mountain of paperwork piled up at his sides, threatening to collapse upon the tired Hokage. It took him a lot longer than he thought to clean up mess. He sighed and looked out the window.

The sun was already setting.

He was several days behind on his paperwork that needed to be sign. Of course he could, and he wished he could leave, but the damned rules say the Hokage must have a delegation for the important talks he must present to the Kazekage, which didn't give him a chance.

"_I wonder, Naru-chan, how are you now?" _he thought. "_I hope Kakashi and the ANBU will look after you_."

He sighed again.

"I'm a bad father. I should be with her, not hanging here signing these stupid documents."

But… Minato knows that he's the Hokage. He has to sign negotiations and maintain his position as the pillar of his village. He won't have time to be able to be with her.

"I'm sorry, Naru-chan…"

* * *

Night has now fallen over the peaceful village of Konoha. But the activities broiling down at the Administrative Building were anything but tranquil. A group of angry shinobis have assembled in a crowd, raising an uproar.

The active Hokage was standing in front of them, a stern look sketched on his face.

"That traitor! He won't get away with this!"

"If he carries the Scroll of Forbidden Seals outside of the village, it will become a major problem!"

"Hokage-sama! We must do something about this!"

The Yondaime nodded. The look on his face told everyone of the graveness of the situation.

"Yes. The jutsus written in that scroll are dangerous and forbidden. If used in certain ways it can cause great trouble." The Hokage turned to his shinobis with all seriousness.

"Bring Mizuki here."

"Hai!

The crowd disappeared in a wink of an eye upon the Yondaime's order. The shinobis dispersed in all directions and began scouring the entire village for the missing chuunin traitor.

Just as they vanished from sight, another reappeared in a cloud of smoke, stopping the Hokage in his tracks just as he was about to leave.

It was Kakashi, with a worried look in his only visible eye as he looked at his former sensei.

Pinching his nose to stop an upcoming migraine, the Yondaime said in a tired voice, "Kakashi, this had better be good news."

When he was assigned the job as Hokage, he expected the glory and fame that came along with the rank, not the stress.

Hatake Kakashi was unusually fidgeting as he gave his message.

Clearing his throat and taking his time to talk, as if he wanted to stall whatever might happen he said, "Err... Naruto's missing... it seems that the teachers from the Academy couldn't find her after the Genin Exam..."

"Nani! Missing? Kidnapping?"

The Hokage fully came alert, eyes directly averted to his former student. Even though he is a ninja, being a father was his first priority. His face demanded information and Kakashi's report.

"Naruto was last located near the Academy on a swing, but I felt another presence with her, disappearing after I lost track of her." Kakashi grimly accounted the events of his findings.

"I'm and some of my summoning dogs are attempting to locate Naruto's whereabouts, whether she is alone or indeed kidnapped."

The Yondaime nodded. "Do that, and send another squadron to patrol the borders and sector 54."

"Hai, Hokage-sama!" Kakashi disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

Sighing, the man sped off to the direction of the forest, the stern look upon his face earlier was now replaced with one of worry.

His parental instincts knew that Naruto was in some sort of danger, and she had no knowledge of the predicament.

As Minato continued to jump from one rooftop to another, a jolt of panic and worry flashes through him. A dreaded look etched across his face, his only thought was…

"…_Naru-chan…"_

He concentrated all his chakra he had and disappeared in a flash of yellow, hoping he was not too late.

* * *

Naruto had been running for hours through the dense forest of Konoha. Her tears have now dried, but she still felt like there's a big block of lead in her chest. Naruto growled to herself.

She hated this feeling.

The sun had already set, gracing the sky with a clear night atmosphere. She wasn't really paying attention for her next jump.

She was still muttering curses under her breath as she made the leap. Suddenly, Naruto crashed into something in midair, knocking both her and the object down to the ground.

"Itai! Damn, what the hell was that?"

Naruto rubbed her head as she looked around for the offender.

Several feet away from her, there was a man wearing a chuunin vest. He staggered to get up, his silver hair obscuring his face from view.

But Naruto recognized him anyway. It was no other than her former teacher, Mizuki-sensei. But what the hell was he doing there?

"Che, so it's the Kyuubi brat again. What's the matter, is daddy's little girl all alone because everybody despises you?" he mocked as the traitor shinobi regained to his feet, dusting off the dirt that speckled his chuunin vest.

Naruto blinked several times as she struggled to register what was happening.

"Oi... what's going on? Why are you even out here? And what the hell's on your back?" She pointed at the object strapped to the nin's back.

Mizuki laughed bitterly as he said, "It's the forbidden scroll. With it, I'll become powerful and rule over this village!"

"Nani?"

"Heh, doesn't that surprise you, demon? That I'll rule over this land instead of your precious otou-san?"

Anger started to flow through Naruto's veins. She clenched her hands into fists while throwing a glare at her ex-proctor.

"Don't talk about otou-san like that!"

A malicious grin spread across Mizuki's face. "Why are you even defending someone who has cursed you for the rest of your pitiful life?"

"Huh? What the hell are you even talking about?"

"Hm. I'll tell you the truth. A rule was created after the incident that occurred twelve years ago."

"A rule?" Naruto temporarily forgotten about her rage against the chuunin.

"It was a rule that only you, Naruto, cannot find out about."

"Only me? What's that rule?"

The grin widened on Mizuki's face. "It's the rule not to say that Naruto is the _Kyuubi_."

Naruto's eyes widen in shocked. "N-Nani?"

"In other words, you are the Kyuubi no Kitsune that destroyed our village and killed countless of innocent lives."

He sneered at the demon brat's frozen body. He decided to continue her torment.

"You've been deceived by the village people and your otou-san all this time. How does it feel, Kyuubi? To be deceive by everyone you know? Especially that person who you called your otou-san, who was the one who sealed that demon inside of you with his own two hands!"

Naruto just lowered her head, obscuring the emotions running through her eyes.

"_Now's my chance. I'm going to become the hero of this village by getting rid of this demon!"_

Mizuki took a kunai out of his weapon holster, twirling it around his finger. "Now my first decree as Hokage, I ordered your death!"

He charged at her with full intent to kill.

Naruto suddenly smirked. She needed to burn some of her anger off. She looked up as Mizuki charged at her.

"Well let's see you try!"

She crossed her two fingers together as she performed her trademark jutsu.

Twenty clones appeared out of thin air and attacked the ninja, but suddenly disappeared in a puff of smoke as the enemy casually destroyed them with no trouble at all.

"How-?"

Mizuki threw the kunai as Naruto suddenly caught it. "Hokage's brat or not, you're still a pitiful genin."

He drew out an array of kunais and shurikens, interlaced between his fingers and threw them with perfect aim and precision at his target.

"**KAGE BUNSHIN NO JUTSU" **

The blonde quickly evaded the weapons aimed for her head as duplicates of herself took the blow. She felt herself getting tired after using that B-ranked jutsu twice.

"_Damn, I wasted too much stamina running around this forest!"_

Naruto futilely tried blocking the taijutsu attacks Mizuki was throwing at her with her arms but, it felt like she was being beaten by a giant.

She panted as she tried to keep up defending the chuunin's blows.

"_I can't keep this up. I don't know how much longer I can last.."_

A hefty kick sent her flying into a wall. It nearly buckled in half as the Kyuubi vessel was rendered useless. Pain seared her body as she was sure that she had at least broken something.

"Heh, so it ends... DIE!"

Mizuki's wrist whipped out, and dozens of kunai and shrunken of almost every assortment all aimed at Naruto sliced though the night air, making almost a whistling sound.

Horror was the only thing the fallen genin could feel as time itself slowed down.

"_I don't have enough strength to dodged this attack. ..I'm really going to die, aren't I…"_

She closed her eyes and cringed…

Blood splattered everywhere as the blades hit human flesh.

It felt like an eternity for Naruto, awaiting the pain that was supposed to be shooting through her body. But she felt nothing.

Naruto opened her eyes slowly as a shadowed image of a hunched figure stood protectively over her, like an angel. Kunai and shuriken protruded out of its back, thick red liquid gushed out of the wounds.

"D-Doushite?"

The short, yet simple word was full of surprise and astonishment. Naruto stared at her savior with wide, astonished blue eyes.

Coughing up blood, a hand wiped the thin trickle from her chin. "Hey Naru-chan, are you all right?"

Blood matted blonde hair and dulled eyes searched the girl for any signs of permanent damage.

All Naruto could do was nod her head.

The Yondaime fell forwards, as Naruto felt hot tears of rage building up in her eyes.

"NO! OTOU-SAN!"

The words exploded from her mouth, full of emotion and heated anger. A kunai found its way wedged between Naruto's fingers, hands clenched tightly around the weapon for all that was worth.

"I'M GONNA KILL YOU, YOU BASTARD!"

Mizuki subconsciously took a step backwards, taken aback by the girl's killing intent. His shock intensified as Naruto suddenly disappeared and he whipped his head around just in time to avoid being decapitated.

He skillfully leapt backwards, parrying attacks, no time to perform handseals for a ninjutsu.

Naruto's rage was just kept barely under control. She forced back the sudden upset for fresh blood, kicking back the abrupt urges to rip apart this foolish mortal with her bare hands.

She. Is. Namikaze. Naruto.

Not some demon!

Suddenly, her body felt strange... like it was suddenly light as a feather, able to lift off the ground for the first time. She felt her chakra returned to her again as she sees yellow.

Mizuki panted for breath. For the first time during this fight, was afraid. It couldn't be! The yellow aura of the legendary jutsu used by the Konoha's Yellow Flash!

"How... do you..."

Mizuki involuntary took a step backwards, a chill ran down his spine.

"Shut the hell up. I won't forgive you... for what you did to..."

Naruto looked back at the fallen Hokage and another wave of vehemence threatened to consume her. Her body trembled in fury as her fist clenched so tightly that her knuckles turned white.

Mizuki barked a laugh that was halfway between a snarl and a cough.

"Please. Like a demon like you would ever defeat me. As you know, I'm a chuunin while you're still a pitiful genin, so like in hell you'll ever manage to beat me." His sneer abruptly slid off his face as Naruto ran at him in a yellow flash.

Mizuki prepared himself, but was shocked to see nothing in font of him.

"_Where did she-"_

"**FUUTON: SENTEN GUFUU NO JUTSU****"**

He turned his head around to see a powerful burst of wind forming into a tornado, heading straight towards him. On top of the branch was Naruto with a fixed scowl on her face.

"Not so tough now are you, you bastard?"

The jutsu rushed towards the defenseless chuunin, in direct path of the tornado.

"Heh, you think that jutsu can stop me, then think again!"

He was about to jump away from the line of attack, but he couldn't move his feet.

"N-Nani?"

"Surprise, aren't you?"

A sweat drop ran down his face as he glanced up at Naruto again, realizing he was in grave danger. He looked down shakily at his feet to discovered two hands holding his feet down.

"_A kage bushin? But how?"_

As if reading his mind, Naruto explained.

"When I disappeared out of your sight, I silently made a kage bushin of myself, telling it to bury underground underneath your position, awaiting the moment to hold you in place. When I called out my jutsu, that was the signal for my kage bushin in grab hold of your feet. You never stood a chance."

"_How can that Kyuubi brat execute a plan that quick? It's not possible!"_

He was brought back to reality by a sudden whirl of wind coming his way. The tornado, now immensely large in size, rushes towards him in top speed.

Mizuki screamed in pain as the tornado came on impact, slashing cuts all over his body. The jutsu continued moving, carrying the traitor inside the vortex, heading for a tree.

A deafening explosion erupted from the collision, splinters came flying through the air in every direction. Someone was sure to have heard that noise.

Naruto jumped down from the branch she was on while panting, drawing in each breath as to satisfy her burning lungs. She looked hard at the unconscious Mizuki-sensei, a kunai in her hand, staring almost guiltily at the innocent-looking weapon.

"Killing you would be just as bad as what you did to..."

Her aura was now diminished, her anger gone and no longer fueled by her emotions. She turned around and walked over the figure of her otou-san.

She felt so tired, mentally, as if she lived through a hundred years and back.

"...But... you..."

She started to choke, tears made it no longer possible for her to see properly.

"...took away the only family I ever had... now I'm alone... and it hurts so much…"

Naruto was now standing over her otou-san's body, guilt eating away at her. She remembered how mad she was at her otou-san for not showing up at the Academy, for not congratulating her for passing that exam.

But he gave away his life, just so he could save her. He really does care for her.

His face looks almost peaceful in a way, even in death. Naruto wished that it was her that died instead of him.

"… I never meant to be angry at you... I still love you... but I guess it's too late to apologize now… I'm sorry... I never meant.. for this to happen... _Otou-san..."_

She fell down next to the body of the Yondaime and cried, finally no longer able to keep her pain locked inside her.

It felt good. Crying made the heavy pain in her chest seem a lot lighter. It lifted the burden she had kept inside herself, hot streams of tears ran down her face.

Suddenly, strong arms hugged around her tightly, pressing her head against their beating heart. Naruto was so surprised. Could this person be alive, this person who was hugging her with so much compassion and love?

A thick voice slightly muffed, as if they too had been crying said, "I'm so sorry... Naruto... I'm such an awful father..."

"What's... going on?" Naruto wiped her eyes as looked down to see her father, tired sapphire eyes that had a hollowed look crinkled into a happy upside-down 'U' as he painfully sat up in a sitting position.

He's moving... that meant that...

"You're... YOU'RE ALIVE!" She exclaimed as she tackled the Yondaime to the ground again as she cheered. "Alive! Alive!"

The Yondaime smiled as his daughter pranced up and down his chest, even though it hurt like hell.

"Yes, very much as you're jumping on my solid body and seeing that you haven't fallen through yet." He gently pushed her off as he affectionately ruffled her hair.

Naruto smiled with happiness and relief. She lightly swat the hand away in mock annoyance.

"Cut that out, otou-san!"

They both started laughing, happy noise in the air.

Growing serious, Yondaime looked directly into Naruto's eyes, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"...I heard what he said back there... And you're not the Kyuubi, Naru-chan. You're just a vessel, nothing more. …I'm so sorry that I sealed the demon inside of you, but I trusted no one else but you to carry that burden.."

He slipped a rough hand under the girl's chin, causing her to look up.

"Just remember that you'll always have people who care for you. You're a hero worthy of the Hokage title and for carrying the Kyuubi. Naru-chan, I acknowledge you as my daughter and the hero you should be: Konoha ninja."

Naruto found herself looking deeply into the cerulean gaze, so alike as her own.

"Otou-san..."

Naruto buried her face in her otou-san's chest, hugging him as if he was going to disappear any minute.

She started crying again, but this time...

It was tears of happiness... Of still having a loving parent...

* * *

After hours of fruitless search, the villagers have gathered back at the front of the Administration Building. Anger was the evident emotion there as the shinobis asked each other if anyone had spotted the traitor.

"Did anyone find Mizuki?"

"No."

"Damn, this isn't good."

"I also heard that Naruto-sama is missing."

"Nani? What if that traitor kidnapped her?"

"There's nothing to worry about." A new elderly voice said.

"Hokage-sama!" the shinobis called out as they watched the Sandaime stepped out of the building.

He had a calm exterior, evidence that the troubles have passed and that there was nothing more for the village to worry about. He had watched the whole ordeal from his crystal ball.

"They will be back soon."

* * *

**Does it seem a bit rushed to you? Heh heh… Sorry if it was. But the first episode does seemed rushed to me, but my other chapters won't be! At least, I hope not..**

**Now some of you may be wondering why Naruto doesn't remember the cute little promise she made with Sasuke. Well, it was so long ago and she has been traveling around with Jiraiya for so long, that she doesn't remember vividly. But don't worry, she'll remember in the future. Besides, I want that rivalry between the two of them.**

**And I don't think that I'll make Iruka that major of a character in Naruto's life. Unless, any of you readers know how I can.**

**Also, the Hokage and the Kazekage are discussing about the upcoming Chuunin Exams. (That's the reason Minato has to do that delegation).**

**Next chapter, we find out how Itachi got out of trouble from the wrath of his mother after his otouto got "married."**


	4. Team Seven

**Summary: **She looks up to gaze at his coal obsidian eyes as he gazes downward at her enchanting sky blue eyes. They both thought, _"Is this love?"_ Who says opposites can't attract? SasuFemNaru… MORE PAIRINGS INSIDE

**Pairings: **SasuFemNaru, ItaFemKyuu, LeeSaku, NejiTen, ShikaTema, KibaHina, ChouIno

**Warnings:** OOC-ness, language

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto

* * *

**Kesshite Wasuremasu  
**_by Aesura_

_**Team Seven**_

* * *

It was another beautiful day in Konoha. The sun was ablaze in the morning sky, bathing upon the roof tops and shining through the windows of the various buildings. Birds were chirping, signaling the start of a new day.

In a mansion a few miles from the populated area of the village, a mop of blonde hair stuck out from under a bed cover sheet. A groan was emitted underneath the covers from the ray of sunlight penetrating through the bedspread. A sleepy Yondaime sat up in bed, letting out a yawn while scratching the back of his head. Bandages wrapped around the outer areas of his face from the injuries of Mizuki's weapons last night.

He felt like sleeping the day away and he would have had not for the delicious aroma coming from the kitchen. His stomach grumbled in hunger. With an embarrassed and lighthearted smile, he jumps out of his bed and landed on the floor. He goes to his closet, picking a set of casual clothing and puts them on. Heading down a flight of stairs, Minato begins to make his way towards the vicinity of the kitchen, being brought in by the sweet smell of food. Minato realizing that the only person that could cook food as good as it smells was his wife, but she's gone, leaving only one person..

"Naru-chan?" the blonde stepped into the kitchen. Inside, he found his daughter happily cooking away at the stove, a mini banquet sitting on the kitchen table behind her.

The table was covered in a wide assortment of breakfast food. A large display of pancakes could be seen, the sweet smell of strawberries garnished on top of the fluffy mounds. On either side of the pancakes were two plates, each having tender but cooked bacon, scrambled eggs, and cooked, diced tomatoes. Two large glasses of orange juice near each plate completed the spread.

The blonde gave a broad grin. "_Now that is what you call food! Too bad she didn't cook up any ramen.._" As Minato continued to grin, his eyes surveyed the table once more. Naruto then walked over to the table, a plate of onigiri in her hands. She placed them on the table, turning to face her father in the process.

"Ohayo, otou-san! I made breakfast for us," she said, giving off a sweet smile. Minato gave a fatherly smile back, his eyes still transfixed on all of the delicious looking food.

"So dig in, otou-san!"

At this, Naruto sat down and began to eat her set of the pancakes. She cut the soft fluffy pancakes with her knife, the strawberries she sliced through spilled out its sweetened juice over the tips of her knife. Her fork punctured the cut pancake piece as she brought it straight to her mouth. A small giggle muffled out of her closed lips.

"This tastes so good! You should try it otou-san!" Naruto said grinning as she cut another piece and placed it into her waiting mouth.

The blonde at her request sat down. Minato using both hands to grab onto the plate which held the bacon and eggs with tomato on the side, he dragged it till it was in front of him, his hands searched for the fork and knife, each on either side of his plate. He cut into the evenly cooked bacon, a small piece of eggs being ripped off and placed onto his fork, along with the bacon as he placed it into his mouth. Minato's blue eyes lit up instantly.

"This really is good!" he exclaimed, taking another bite in his mouth.

"_I haven't eaten this well since last time Kushina cooked."_ The blonde began to shovel the food into his mouth.

Naruto paused from her almost finished pancakes. "I'm glad you like it otou-san."

They ate in silence for the next two minutes, neither saying a word until Minato broke the silence. "Hey Naru-chan, when did you learned how to cook like this?"

Naruto looked at her otou-san with one eye as she gulped down a quarter of her orange juice. Setting the glass down, she answered, "If you're on the road with Ero-sennin and all he does is his 'researching' and writing his perverted books, then you'll need to learn how to cook for yourself. He couldn't boil water to save his life!"

He chuckled at her choice of words. So true. "I guess you're right, Naru-chan."

They both finished eating in silence, Minato looking at his daughter after they had finished. As she was placing the soiled dishes into the sink, he asked, "Naru-chan. Could you do me a favor?"

Naruto turned around from the sink, averting her attention to her otou-san now. "What is it?"

The older blonde rose from his seated position, walking over to the kitchen countertop. A lone scroll laid there, its green and mahogany colors bordering the inner and outer areas of the rolled-up parchment. The seal of the Hokage sealed the scroll intact, letting viewers know that it's from the Hokage himself.

"Could you deliver this to Sarutobi. He should be going to the Hokage's office any time soon. It's very important that he receives this message," he requested, handing the scroll to Naruto.

She took the scroll from his hand, inspecting it curiously. "Sandaime-jiji? Sure! I'll give this to him on my way to the Academy."

Running out of the kitchen in a hurry as she tucked the scroll security in her pouch, Naruto shouted over her shoulder. "I'll see you later, otou-san!"

Minato watched as his daughter ran out of the kitchen door, hearing the door slam on her way out. He just sighed and stood up, stretching his arms into the air to stretch out some cramped muscles, satisfied to feel the cracks that responded. "Well, I should get ready for my day…"

* * *

The Sandaime was currently strolling down the corridor that leads to the Hokage's office. He decided to pay the current Hokage a visit, after what went down last night. As he turned the door knob open and entered the room, he saw a figure sitting in the Hokage's chair, their back turned to him. But even in that posture, he could still see some traces of blonde hair sticking from behind the chair.

"Aah, Minato! Glad to see you're up!" Sarutobi greeted, smiling in the process. He walked towards the Hokage, who was still obscured by the turned chair, until he was in front of the desk that separated the two.

"I just thought I drop by and see how you're doing. But by the looks of things it seems that you're just fine." He stopped his rambling to see if the blonde was going to respond. When he didn't, Sarutobi continued on.

"But I must say that I'm surprised that you're not sleeping over your paperwork again, let alone come to work after yesterday's events. You usually look for every little excuse to get out of work."

The Sandaime chuckled at his comment, but the blonde wasn't laughing along with him. The older man realizes this, his chortling slurring off. The atmosphere now lingered on with an awkward silence. From what he could detect, the blonde gave off a pissed-off aura, ready to be unleashed at any moment. He must not be in a good mood right now. "Ehh, hey lad, I didn't mean it like th—"

The figure swirled around in the chair they were sitting in. Their arms were crossed with impatience at the man before them, an angry frown settled on their face. But this person wasn't the Yondaime, it was…

"N-Naruto?"

As if waken from the position she was in, she shot up from her seat, slamming her hands on to the desk. "What the hell took you so long, Sandaime-jiji? I've been waiting here for twenty fucking minutes! Where the hell were you?"

It took a few moments for the Sandaime to get over his shock. Whether it was for seeing Naruto instead of Minato or Naruto's colorful language, he didn't know. Maybe it was both. "Now, now. Mind your language, Naruto. A young girl such as yourself shouldn't be saying those kinds of words," counseled the old man.

"Yeah, yeah," she waved off with no consideration of his words whatsoever, standing up from the Hokage chair. He just sighed in defeat at her answer, sauntering over to the Hokage seat as he and Naruto switched places.

"So, Naruto, why did you need to see me?" the old man asked, chewing on the handle of his pipe as he watched the blond stood on the opposite side of the desk.

"Oh!" Naruto snapped out of her angry sulking, it being replaced with one of realization. Digging around for the object she seeks in her ninja pouch, she pulled out the scroll her otou-san asked her to deliver.

"Otou-san wanted me to give you this scroll. He said for you to read it." She held out the scroll in her palm, waiting for retired Hokage to take it.

"Arigatou, Naruto," he said sincerely, seizing the object intended for him. "Speaking of which, where is—"

The Sandaime cut off his unanswered question as they both look up at the sound of a weapon withdrawal coming from behind the slightly opened door.

"-Fight me, old man!" came an unruly yell as the door to the office was flung open with a heavy crash. Naruto watched as a small boy runs in wielding a sharp shuriken in his hand, aiming straight for the Sandaime.

"The title of Godaime belongs to me, Konohamaru!" Unfortunately, the boy fell flat to the floor, tripping over his own two feet.

"Itai…!" he yelled in his hands on the ground, the cry of pain muffled as he scrunched up into a ball.

"_Who is this kid?"_ Naruto thought, sweatdropping at the child's clumsiness. Suddenly, a new voice diverts Naruto to the door again.

"Aaahh!"

Another man raced into the office, dressed entirely in black. He wore a pair of circular shades covering his eyes, his hite-ate tied around his head like a bandana. Naruto's face settled in an unhappy pout. "_…That closet pervert is here as well."_

She remembered the time when her otou-san assigned him to be her mentor whenever he had to do Hokage duties. Of course, she never liked her "sensei". He always kept calling her _Young Mistress _like it was her name and never let her have any fun.

"'_Fun' is not the path of becoming a great Hokage, Young Mistress. It takes hard work and training. And the quickest path of becoming Hokage is to learn from me,"_ he always says.

Pfth. Yeah right. When they were reviewing over chakra control, she caught him sneaking a peek at the girls in the bathhouse. He just said that he'd never performed such a vulgar behavior when she asked him about her observation. She had to practically beg her otou-san to fired Ebisu from his tutoring job. Konohamaru sat up and rubbed his head. "Is this a trap?"

"Are you okay, Honorable Grandson?" Ebisu asked in alarm. "There are no traps here by the way," he concluded, adjusting his sunglasses a little ways higher.

Ebisu then turned his gazed to the other occupant in the office. He gasped in surprise. _"That girl is… Young Mistress."_

After easing the soreness on his face somewhat, Konohamaru glanced to the left of him, his eyes came to settle on Naruto who stood not so far away. He leaped up and walked in front of the blonde, pointing an accusing finger at her in a challenging manner. "I get it! _You_ did something, didn't you?"

"You just tripped over your own two feet!" Naruto retorted snippily, feeling her eyebrow twitch in annoyance. She was already late to get to the Academy on time, and this little squirt isn't helping with that problem. She grabbed Konohamaru's collar and lifted him a couple of feet into the air.

"Young Mistress!" Ebisu yelled in panic and distress. "Please unhand him. That boy is the grandson of our great Sandaime-sama!"

Naruto shot him a dirty look. _"Again with the 'Young Mistress,"_ she thought angrily.

Naruto looked down at the kid. Ebisu said that he was the grandson of the Sandaime. She had wanted to beat the crap out of this little punk-Sandaime-jiji's grandson or not-for accusing her of a false crime, but the memory of what Ebisu called that kid came back to her. "_He calls you 'Honorable Grandson'… He must only see you by that title, rather than as Konohamaru, a kid who had dreams like everyone else. Just as I'm always seen to him as 'Young Mistress', the daughter of the Yondaime, I was treated differently because of that…"_

But to Konohamaru, he thought differently. _"She stopped right after finding out that I'm the grandson of a Hokage. Heh, she must be the same as the glasses-teacher and everyone else."_

"What's the matter?" Konohamaru demanded. "Why don't you hit me if you can! You're no match for a grandson of a Hokage!"

Naruto humphed at the very idea. "Like I care about that!…"

She raised a fist, and brought it crashing down on top of the smaller boy's head. "..Konohamaru!"

Konohamaru looked up at the blonde with shocked wide eyes while falling down to the floor by the impact of her fist.

"_She said.. my name…?" _he wondered, gradually losing consciousness. He passed out right on the spot.

"N-NANI?" Ebisu cried, his mouth hanging agape, still trying to comprehend what just happened.

"_I know I should punish Young Mistress for committing such an act on the Honorable Grandson of our respected Sandaime, but she is the daughter of our village's active Hokage, the venerated Yondaime. Oh what am I to do?"_

The Sandaime just sighed into his hands, like these kinds of events were natural for him. _"Oh well."_

Ebisu turned to face the Sandaime, pleading for his advice. "Sandaime-sama, what should we do about this problem? Young Mistress-"

Ebisu looked over at her direction, only to see a vacant spot of where she used to be. He looked around too see if she was still in the room. "Young Mistress! She's goneeeee!"

"I believe she went the Academy. It's the day she, along with the other graduated students, get assigned to their genin teams. She mustn't be last for this important day."

"Eh?" he stopped hyperventilating and looked at the Hokage with a perplexed expression for a moment. Then the news dawned on him, suddenly remembering what today was.

"I-I mean, yes, of course! I knew I taught Young Mistress well, keeping up with her studies and such. Well, I believe we should take our leave, right Honorable Grandson?"

He looks at the spot where his student was but found him also not there either. "Honorable Grandson? Blast it! Where is he this time?"

"It looks like he ran off again…" the Sandaime answered in a composed tone.

Ebisu turned to face the Hokage, his appearance now deprived from the supposed controlled look, substituted with the one of panic again. "Nani? That's an emergency!"

He ran quickly out of the Hokage's office, hoping that he wasn't too far away from the runaway kid. "Honorable Grandson!"

The Sandaime stared at the door Ebisu dashed out of. _"Eh.. How did he grow up to be like that?"_

Shaking his head, he now directed his attention to the scroll Naruto had given him. He wondered what could be so important to tell him that Minato had to send a scroll. He could of just went over here and tell him in person. Those injuries he'd received were minor, only flesh wounds. Pushing the assumptions from his mind, he loosened the edge of the scroll, unraveling its contents with curiosity.

_Hey Old Man,_

_If you're reading this letter, then that means Naru-chan must have gotten it to you. Anyway, just to let you know, Article B, Section 5 of the Hokage manual states that if the active Hokage is injured or enable to carry out the Kage's job, then the retired or runner-up Hokage must temporally take the place as Hokage. And since I'm in no condition to carry out the Hokage job, I'm leaving it all in your capable hands. Good luck, old man. You're going to need it._

_-Namikaze Minato_

The old man's wooden pipe fell out of his mouth, landing at the base of his feet.

"MINATO!"

* * *

Somewhere in the outskirts part of Konoha, Minato sneezed, waking him up from his cat nap. "Huh, someone must be talking about me…"

He just shrugged it off and dozed off again.

* * *

The classroom was noisy as usual as soon as Naruto slid the door open. She looked around, noting that most of the seats were already taken.

"_Sigh. I was hoping to sit next by Hinata-chan today, but…"_ Naruto glanced up to see her friend sitting beside a brunette boy with a dog on his head, trying to get the shy Hyuuga girl to talk. "_Why am I always late?..."_

She walked over and slumped in the only open seat closest to her. But what she didn't know that there was a person sitting next by her, the infamous Uchiha Sasuke, who was taking a side glance at the discouraged blonde. Naruto watched as most of the kids congratulated one another for passing the exams while the others bragged about their future plans now that they're true ninjas. Suddenly, the noise of what sounded like a herd of elephants outside the classroom snapped both Naruto and Sasuke out of their gazes. The door slid open abruptly as two girls, a pink-haired one and a blonde one, tried to get through the door, pushing each other out of the way to see who would come first. They both got through the door at the same time, spreading out their hands simultaneously. "GOAL!"

The two kunoichis shot daggers at each other, their hand being at each other's cheek, then dropped them while panting heavily from the heavy run. The blonde turned her head towards her rival, a tired yet mocking smirk set on her face. "I win again, Sakura."

Sakura grinned evilly. "What are you talking about _Ino-pig_? My toe entered the class before yours by a centimeter. Are you blind?"

Naruto sweatdropped at the scene while Sasuke just turned his gaze from the "presidents" of his annoying fanclub.

"_These girls actually graduated?"_ Naruto thought unbelievably. Sakura then turned around to glance at her "true love." Her face instantly brightened up and ran to the young Uchiha, ignoring Ino's protest.

"Get out of my way!" Sakura shouted, pushing Naruto from her line of view of her crush. But unfortunately for Sakura, she pushed Naruto forward, right where Sasuke was sitting. Ino and the rest of the fan-girls gathered around to see what the commotion was about near _their_ Sasuke-kun. The rest of the students also turned towards the scene, curious at what's happening. Utter silence fell through the class.

Naruto. Was. Kissing. Sasuke. Right. On. The. Lips.

"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Sakura felt like a bomb has exploded in her world.

'**CHA! I was supposed to get Sasuke-kun's first kiss!' **Inner-Sakura shouted, punching an invisible force in the air.

That banshee cry snapped the two kissers back to reality, parting the kiss as Naruto quickly sat up. Pointing an accusing finger at Sasuke, she yelled, "What the hell, you teme! You fucking kiss me on the lips!"

Both noticeably didn't see the redness on each other's faces. Sasuke, who now has gotten himself to sitting position, countered, "_I_ kissed you? You were the one who fell on top of me, dobe!"

An angry vein popped on Naruto's head. "Don't call me that, teme!"

He just averted his gaze directly on Naruto's blue eyes. "Fine then, usuratonkachi."

Naruto was about to beat the crap out of the raven-haired boy, until she sensed a pitiful excuse of killer intent directed towards her from Sasuke's fangirls. Sasuke felt the same presence intended for him, coming from the most of the males in the room. Apparently, Naruto had her own fanclub formed (without her knowledge) over night that could rival Sasuke's. They both shot the opposing glares a killer intent so dangerous that it made everyone quiver in fear. Naruto was not in the mood to deal with them, not after that teme kissed her. The Uchiha's motive for the killer intent was different. It was like he had a possessive aura around him, threatening to kill anyone who tries to claim what's rightfully his. The two fanclubs backed off for now, both thinking the same things. _"You are now my eternal rival, Sasuke/Naruto!"_

* * *

Hatake Kakashi was late again. This time he was late to the review session to pick genin for teams. Though it's not like it really mattered anyway. No students have ever passed his test, and he doubt that his new team will pass this time around. Kakashi walked into the Hokage's office where the other jounins were standing. His presence was not unnoticed. Sandaime spoke, "Nice of you to finally join us Kakashi."

Kakashi had his visible eye closed in a sheepish way. "Sorry I'm late, I ended up knocking my alarm clock out the window some how and didn't hear it go off."

Everyone in the room sighed frowningly at the copy-nin's excuse. Walking over to where the rest of the jounin are, Kakashi took his place next to a newer female jounin, Kurenai and a male jounin named Asuma. "Is that her? The Yondaime's daughter, Namikaze Naruto," the silver-haired shinobi asked, gazing into the Hokage's crystal ball.

"That's right," the Sandaime answered. They looked at the crystal ball again to now see the Namikaze heir yelling at the Uchiha, both having red faces for some reason.

"_Hm. She really hasn't change that much since I last seen her. Still a loud mouth as always,"_ the jounin mused.

The elder Hokage cleared his throat, getting the attention of the jounins in the room. "As I was saying, you have been chosen to be the jounin instructors of the new genin teams."

He shuffled through his papers, finally locating what he was looking for. Three folders were now in his hand. "These folders will tell you the stats of your newly acquired genin team, about their advantages and disadvantages."

He handed one to Kurenai. "Kurenai, your team is Team Eight: Hyuuga Hinata, Inuzuka Kiba, and Aburame Shino."

"Hai, Hokage-sama."

The next folder was for Asuma. "Your team is Team Ten: Yamanaka Ino, Nara Shikamaru, and Akimichi Chouji."

Asuma nodded his head in understanding. The Hokage chuckled as he handed the last folder to Kakashi, saying, "Kakashi, you get Team Seven: Haruno Sakura, Uchiha Sasuke and Namikaze Naruto."

Oh, the irony of it all.

* * *

"Settle down, everyone," Iruka said hushing the class down as soon when he got in. Everybody went back to their seats and listened for Iruka's final instructions. "Beginning today all of you are now official Leaf shinobis but you are still merely rookie genin. Now you will be assigned missions by the village. The hard part has just started so do your best."

"Today we will divide the class into three-man teams and each team will be assigned a jounin sensei. You will follow your jounin sensei's instructions as you complete your assigned missions. The team arrangements were made to balance out each team's strength so that not one team will come out as overwhelmingly powerful."

A shocked look crossed Naruto's, Sakura's, and Ino's faces. _"Three-man teams?"_

Iruka took out a clipboard with various names written on it. "If there are no questions, we'll start of with Team One..."

"I wonder who's going to be in Sasuke-kun's team," Ino asked behind Sakura, waiting for her to take the bait.

"I don't know," Sakura replied back nonchalantly, not going to fall into Ino's trap. She shot her blonde rival a hateful glower.

'**CHA! I'm the one who's going to team up with him of course!'** Inner-Sakura shouted with her fist clenched in fury.

"_Three-man teams? Sounds like they'll slow me down…" _Sasuke thoughtfully propped his chin on his hands as his mind raced with the possible combinations of the teams that could be one of his own. He took another side glance at a certain blonde.

Naruto crossed her arms, considering who she wanted to be teamed up with. "_Well, I guess anybody would do, as long as it's not with that teme,"_ thought Naruto.

"Next, Team Seven consists of Namikaze Naruto…" Naruto's attention perked up after she heard her name called.

"..Haruno Sakura…" Sakura was shocked at being teamed up with the very person she wanted to beat up to a pulp for kissing her Sasuke-kun. Then a scowl appeared on her face, giving her rival a death glare. _"Naruto, you're going to be so sorry that you stole Sasuke-kun's kiss away from me!"_

"_This couldn't get any worse.."_ Naruto thought as she felt the anger emitting from the pink-haired girl aimed at her.

"…and Uchiha Sasuke."

"YATTA!" Sakura cried out, jumping out of her seat in delight as Sasuke's face could be seen buried in his arms. Naruto could have sworn that he was moaning.

Naruto fought the urged to bang her head on the table over and over again. _"Great. I'm teamed up with a girl who wants to kill me and a boy who I want to kill…"_

She was too busy sulking to notice a pair of lavender eyes staring down at her. "_So I'm in a different team than Naruto-chan…"_ a discouraged Hyuuga thought at not being teamed up with her friend.

"Next, Team Eight. Hyuuga Hinata.."

The sound of her name being called snapped Hinata out of her pondering. "H-Hai."

"…Inuzuka Kiba.." Said Kiba smirked at hearing his name being called.

"and Abrame Shino." Shino remained impassive, only adjusting his shades with his finger a bit.

Sakura turned behind her to face Ino with a triumph grin. "Take that Ino-pig!"

Sakura gave Ino a victory sign. An angry vein popped on Ino's forehead from the unfair placement. She grounded her teeth together while clenching both of her hands in fury.

"Why do you get to be with him?" Ino angrily exclaimed.

**'****Alright! Love prevails!' **Inner Sakura exclaimed exuberantly.

A brunette boy to Ino's left watched as she continued to seethe. _"How troublesome."_

"Why do girls like such a guy anyway?" he asked lazily, not really knowing why he asked that sort of question in the first place. It would just create an excuse for her to talk about how great _Sasuke-kun_ is and what not.

Ino glared angrily at the person who made that comment. "Don't you even know that, Shikamaru?"

Shikamaru glanced at Ino's direction, now regretting asking that question. "I'm not a girl."

Ino just sighed at his response. She looked away, smiling. "That's why you're not popular.

She probed her hand underneath her chin. "I wouldn't want to team up with a guy like you."

"Team Ten: Yamanaka Ino, Nara Shikamaru.."

A shock look crossed Ino's face as Shikamaru taunted her bad luck. "Looks like you have to team up with me."

She growled at his attitude.

"and… Akimichi Chouji." Chouji paid no attention as he stuffed chips into his mouth.

In contrast, Ino's face fell at the thought of her being in a team with a lazy ass ninja, as well as a chip loving eating one. She slumped in her seat in despair. _"Not him too…"_ Today was just not her day.

"That's it for the groups-"

"Iruka-sensei! Why does forehead girl and _Naruto_ get to be teamed up with Sasuke-kun?" Ino angrily exclaimed as she pointed at the cheerful Sakura and shooting Naruto a hate-filled glare which she ignored. Maybe Iruka might change the teams…

"Well… this year, we did things a little differently that would affect the outcome of the teams since Naruto-san just joined us… Naruto-san and Sakura just… happened to be teamed up with Sasuke…" Iruka haplessly smiled as Ino's face that resembled a banshee's.

..Or not.

Iruka heaved a sigh before continuing on with his speech. "Okay, your jounin senseis should be arriving shortly. They will call for their acquired team, and you will leave with them to start your life as a shinobi. Even though that life can be dangerous and comes with many obstacles and hardships, I have no doubt in my mind that all of you will do just fine. Good luck."

With that, he made a hand sign and disappeared in a puff of smoke.

* * *

"He's late," said Naruto, clenching her teeth, becoming impatient. The three Genin were the only three left in the classroom. Sasuke sat in a seat, while Sakura silently fumed about their teacher. They waited for three hours for their late sensei and he still isn't here yet.

"Naruto, why don't you sit still?" Sakura's green eyes were now focused on Naruto, who was pacing back and forth about a yard away from the door. The blonde stopped her pacing and turned around to face Sakura, a slight frown upon her face.

"But why is our sensei the only one late? All the other teams went somewhere with their new senseis already and-" Naruto abruptly cut herself off when she sensed an unknown chakra. Naruto stilled. Blue eyes darted towards the door and narrowed. All emotions of her previous conversation diminished, now replaced by anger at her late sensei. Confused by the odd behavior both Sasuke and Sakura looked towards the door. As the door started to slide open, Naruto expertly threw a kunai at the intruder. Luckily, the man caught it before the weapon could bury itself in his flesh. The catcher revealed to be a lazy looking jounin. Realization of who it was crossed Naruto's face.

"Oi, what are you doing here, Kakashi-oji?" Naruto nearly shouted, pointing a finger at the silver-haired man.

Kakashi examined the finely sharpen kunai for a few moments before turning his attention back to the loud blonde. "Now, now, Naruto. I expect you to call me Kakashi-sensei from now on."

"NANI? _You're_ our sensei?" Two pairs of eyes turned towards Naruto once her query with their sensei was over. Many thoughts raced through the other two genin's minds. How does Naruto know this man? Kakashi coughed, surveyed his team as three pairs of eyes focused solely on him.

"How should I say this… My first impression of you guys are…" He cupped his chin with his hand, pausing to think.

"I hate you." Disgruntled looks spread across each of their faces.

"Meet me on the roof so we can get better acquainted." He then disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Emerald, cerulean, and onyx eyes stared blankly at the empty spot that was once occupied.

* * *

A few minutes later, the newly formed Team Seven and their instructor sat themselves on the roof of the academy building under the veranda. "Let's see, why don't you introduce yourselves."

Kakashi looked at his new team with a lax expression in his eyes, as he leaned casually against the railing. The team sat down on the steps with Sasuke in the middle, Naruto sitting to his left and Sakura to his right.

"Introduce ourselves? What should we say?" Sakura asked.

Kakashi shrugged. "How about your like and dislikes, dreams about the future, hobbies ..something like that."

"Introduce yourself first Sensei. After all we don't know much about you," said Sakura.

"Me?" Kakashi pointed to himself, considering the thought.

"Hm… well, I guess that's fair. I'm Hatake Kakashi. I have no intention to tell you my likes and dislikes." Naruto and Sakura looked with surprise at their sensei's response.

"As for my dream…" Kakashi looked up, as if deciding whether or not to tell them. "I have lots of hobbies…" The others gave him annoyed looks as he trailed off.

"So all we found out was his name," Sakura muttered to her other two teammates in sheer irritation.

"Now it's your turn." Kakashi diverted their attention back to him.

Kakashi's eyes flicked towards Naruto. "Tell your teammates a little about yourself, _blondie_."

Naruto narrowed his eyes at her sensei, pouting at the name he referred to her as. Kakashi smirked under his mask. That word always got as rise out of her ever since she was a child. She tried to ignore the nickname and continued on with her introduction. "My name is Namikaze Naruto. I like hanging out with Hinata-chan, ramen, cooking, and people who are nice and true to themselves. I dislike people who judge others before they get to know them, and people who put down others just to show them who's stronger. My hobbies are training, learning new jutsus, and spending time with otou-san. And my dream…" she gave a determined look. "..is to one day be Hokage, the best shinobi than any of the previous Hokages!"

The Jounin's face turned to one of surprise once she heard her say her dream. He gave a light smile to that. He never thought his sensei's daughter would follow in his footsteps. "_Well, hasn't she turned out interesting_."

"Okay, next," Kakashi said, turning his gaze to the pink-haired girl. She blushed, trying to act cute. "I'm Haruno Sakura. I like… well, the person I like is…" She coyly looked at the boy to her left as she continued.

"And my hobby is… well, my dream is to…" She kept glancing at Sasuke with a blush and suddenly squealed.

"And what do you hate?" Kakashi asked, trying to get thekunoichi back on topic.

"Ino-pig and Naruto," she said deadpanned, her mood suddenly darkening. Naruto looks over at her surprisingly mute expression.

"_Girls at her age must be more interested in love than ninja training."_ His gaze level onto the boy sitting in the center. "Last guy."

Sakura giggled when it was Sasuke's turn. Sasuke stared right back at the silver haired jounin, his hands hiding the lower part of his face from his sensei's eyes. "My name is Uchiha Sasuke. I like a few things that I don't feel like mentioning. My hobbies are training with aniki and learning new jutsus. I dislike sweets and **HATE** fangirls."

Sakura slightly flinched at the disgust that seeped into his voice.

"Also, I have an ambition that I have no intention to leave as just a dream: to keep my promise I made to a certain person long ago." An eerie pause stretched out after Sasuke finished his introduction. They were staring at him with different thoughts racing through their heads.

"_Sasuke-kun is SO cool,"_ Sakura thought in awe.

"_Hm? I wonder who?"_ mused Kakashi, not expecting that kind of response.

"_A promise?"_ Naruto thought, a vague memory seeming to sprout back into her mind suddenly..

"_Arigatou__! It's a promise!"_

Naruto shook her head to rid herself of that memory. She needed to concentrate more on what's going on before her, not going down memory lane.

"Alright, you three all have unique personalities. I like that. We'll begin a mission starting tomorrow."

"Hai! What kind of mission is that, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto said excitedly.

Gazing at his students he shrugged, "First, we're going to do something that we four can do."

Sakura's expression was curious as she questioned, "What is it?"

"Survival training," Kakashi stated, his voice firm yet his expression lazy.

"Survival training?" Naruto frowned at the answer as she felt all the excitement drain away from her body. She already did enough training when she was traveling with Ero-sennin.

"Why is our mission survival training?" Sasuke murmured.

Sakura seemed to agree. "Yeah, we had plenty of training at the academy."

"This is no ordinary training," said Kakashi, closing his eyes.

Naruto tilted her head in confusion. "Then what kind of training is it?" Their sensei started chuckling at the prospect of getting a rise out them.

"Hey, what's so funny sensei?" Sakura questioned, surprised as well as puzzled.

He raised his hand as if in a gesture of dismissal. "Well, if I say this, then I'm sure you three are going to be surprised."

"Huh?"

Kakashi's eyes slowly opened, narrowing his gaze on to the three and frowning. He switched to a cold, emotionless voice. "Of 27 graduates, only nine are going to become Genins. The other 18 will be sent back to the academy. In other words, this training is going to be a difficult test with a dropout rate of 66%."

As expected, their expressions were priceless.

"See? You three are surprised!" Kakashi pointed out, sniggering a bit.

"What! We worked so hard in the academy. What's the point of graduating?" Sakura exclaimed, absolutely mortified at the thought of failing.

Kakashi again looked bored. "That? It just picks out those who are qualified to become a genin."

"NANI?" Sakura couldn't believe what she's hearing.

Kakashi ignored Sakura's violent reaction. "Anyway, I'm going to determine whether you pass or fail tomorrow at the training grounds near the Shinobi Memorial. Bring your ninja equipment and meet at exactly five in the morning!"

Different emotions were racing across each shinobi's face. Naruto was shivering. It was not because of fear of failing, but out of anger. "_I'm not going to lose to a thing like this. I'll prove to Kakashi-sensei that my training wasn't all for nothing!"_

Sakura clenched her fists at what will happen if she fails. _"If I fail this test, I'm going to be separated from Sasuke-kun. This is a trial of love!"_

Sasuke shook slightly at the thought of failing a mere survival test. No, he **will** pass and uphold the Uchiha name.

"Oh yeah, don't eat breakfast. You're going to throw up if you do." He allowed his words to sink into his students' heads. The team blanched at the idea. "Now then, meeting's over." He gave a wave off.

* * *

It was mid-evening in Konoha as Uchiha Sasuke arrived at the porch of his home. The Uchiha manor was so huge that it was hard not to see it. The young Uchiha was feeling very good about himself. Not only did he found the girl he was searching for after all these years, he's even on the same team as her. Sure, they didn't get off to a good start, with the whole unexpected kissing, but the Uchiha liked a good challenge. It makes the prize that more desirable. Sliding the door open, he took off his sandals announced loudly, "I'm home."

There was no reply in return. Assuming that his parents must be out and aniki was on another mission, he stepped into the first room in the foyer: the living room. The living room was extremely elegant, with beautiful tatami mats that were obviously new, for they had a lovely yellow-green sheen. The tatami mats were edged in a strip of silk with a pattern of green and gold. Not far away in an alcove hung a scroll written in a beautiful hand, which turned out to be a gift to Uchiha Fugaku from the Sandaime for his support and aid to the Uchiha Police Force. Beneath it, on the wooden base of the alcove, an arrangement of blossoming dogwood branches rose up out of a shallow dish that was irregular in shape with a cracked glaze of the deepest black.

Suddenly, he heard someone's laughter and another person's voice drawing nearer from the kitchen. Entering the adjacent room, he discovered aniki and Shisui in the midst of their conversation. Uchiha Shisui, Itachi's best friend and three years his senior, was leaning against the kitchen counter. He'd grown tall and muscular, although not too bulky. His hair was cut short, some sticking out and defying gravity, but in a stylish way. The ladies, both young and suspiciously older, were only too happy to tell him how good it looked for his long angular face. "Oh, hello, Otouto." he greeted his brother as he and Shisui noticed his presence. "You seem surprisingly happy today. Is there some reason for it?"

Sasuke stuffed his hands in his pockets and smirked, an infamous Uchiha trait. "I'm one step closer in achieving my ambition."

With that said, he walked out of the room. When Shisui was sure Sasuke was out of earshot, he suddenly burst out laughing. "What's so funny?" Itachi asked with slightly narrowed eyes, wary of his sudden outburst.

"Oh-oh! Don't you remember, years ago, I mean, when you "abandoned" your brother in the forest one day? He said that he "married" the Yondaime's daughter?" he asked, amused. Itachi paled. That memory was anything but vague in his mind…

"_How am I going to tell okaa-san about this? I was supposed to be watching over him today!" Itachi started to think of some excuses that will get him out of this predicament, but he came up empty handed. 'I could say that I was getting a snack for otouto, and I got lost. …No, okaa-san will never believe that. Or I could say that I was helping an old lady get her cat down from a tree. …Hell no. I'll just sound like Kakashi-san. What if I—'_

"_We're home!" Sasuke shouted with enthusiasm._

'_-Oh shit..'_

_Taking off his sandals in a hurry, Sasuke ran to the kitchen. He couldn't wait to tell kaa-san the good news. "KAA-SAN!"_

_Itachi tailed behind him, a dreaded feeling coming to him.__He kept my eyes glued on his little brother's back, nearly crushing a discarded scroll on the floor with his foot as he rushed after him. No matter what, he couldn't afford to let Sasuke out of his sight. Entering the kitchen, the two brothers saw their mother cooking up dinner. She turned around when hearing her younger child calling for her, now facing her two sons. She gave them both a motherly smile once she saw them. Itachi wondered how long that smile would last on her face._ "_How was your day Sasu-chan?" she asked, kneeling down to his height level as Sasuke ran up to her._

_Sasuke didn't let his kaa-san's nickname of him bring down his mood. After all, who could be sad on their own wedding day? And he got some great news, for now his kaa-san has a new daughter-in-law._ "_Kaa-san, guess what?"_

_Oh no, he already started!_

"_I made a new friend today!"_

_He had no choice._

"_She's real pretty too!"_

_He has to…_

"_And today, she now my—"_

_A swift hand clasped over the young boy's mouth, preventing another word from escaping his lips. "__Otouto, shouldn't you go rest up for training tomorrow?"_

_Sasuke struggled to peel off aniki's hand, only succeeding in gazing dumbly at him. "Huh?"_

"_I'm going to help you with that shuriken jutsu you've been wanting to learn."_

_Sasuke's face light up. This day could get any better. "Hai!"_

_Getting out of his older brother's grasp, Sasuke started to run out of the room, but his kaa-san's voice stopped him when he was just an inch away from the exit._

_Crap._

"_Sasu-chan, you never told me what your new friend is now, or her name for that matter," she stated, her curiosity at who this mysterious friend could be. And a girl no less._

_Fucking crap._

_Sasuke face lit up in realization, almost forgetting why he came to his kaa-san in the first place._ "_Oh, she's now my—"_

"_Best friend." They both turned towards Itachi's direction, a questioning look on their faces as to why he answered in such a quick manner. Recomposing himself to his usual cool demeanor, he said, "Otouto was saying that she is now his best friend."_

"_But that's not—" Sasuke started to object, ''Cause she's my wife!'' Though he never had time to finished his statement because a hand clasped over his mouth again. Itachi covered Sasuke's mouth for the second time today, picking him up around the abdomen and hauled him out of the kitchen before he could utter another word. Their mother would give him "The Look" and show him her true wrath if she ever found out about this predicament. Maybe keeping his otouto occupied with helping him train will make him forget all about this mess._

_Mikoto just shook her head, sighing in bewilderment. "I'll never understand those two."_

A shiver sent down Itachi's spine at the very thought. He barely escaped that one, especially with his otouto's constant outbursts. Shisui burst out laughing again at Itachi's reaction. Who knew the great Uchiha Itachi would be easily frightened by his own mother? Though, Shisui wouldn't really blame him. His mother could get real scary from time to time.

"Shisui, _shut up_," Itachi hissed, his face tinged with a faint blush of embarrassment.

"Heh heh. Gomen, Itachi. I'm bad at whispering," Shisui said between gasps, waving his hand up and down to calm his friend down. Itachi sigh, and Shisui's voice was muffled.

"Shisui, learn to hold in your laughter." Itachi said to Shisui, as Shisui's mouth was covered by Itachi's hand. Shisui pried Itachi's hand from his mouth, standing opposite to him. Making his way to the door he said leeringly, "Yeaah. That will be the day you dress up in a kimono like some princess!"

"_…_" Itachi growled, his Sharingan activating, the three totems spinning around wildly in his eyes. Oh he was so dead. Then, he bolted at full speed outside as Itachi chased after him, his eyes murderous. The last thing the villagers saw were two dark blurs that were Uchiha Itachi and his best friend, Shisui's cackling filling the air.

* * *

Naruto lay down on the roof and gazed up at the stars, folding her arms behind her head. Twinkling in the heavens above, they looked like they didn't have any care in the world. It was nightfall and the stars were shining down on Konoha brightly tonight. She closed her eyes, musing over her thoughts. Today she met her teammates and sensei.

That Sasuke-teme who wears his ever-smug face, Haruno Sakura who looks at Uchiha as if he was the most handsome guy in the entire universe, and their half-eyed sensei Hatake Kakashi. The first day was a blast… their arrogant sensei ordered them to arrive at the Shinobi Memorial tomorrow at five in the morning and not to eat any breakfast. Stupid Kakashi-sensei. Who knew that he'll be her sensei out of all people? She opened her eyes and sighed, sensing a familiar presence coming near her.

"There you are." Her otou-san said as he sat down beside her. "I've been looking everywhere for you."

Naruto sat up from her laid-back position, her hands supporting her weight on either side of her. "Gomen, otou-san. I just needed to get out and think for a while, you know, fresh air and all."

He fixed his eyes on his daughter's face, who didn't even glance at him. "How's your day?"

Naruto's once peaceful expression was now marred to one of annoyance. "Don't ask me… it's the worst…"

Not heeding to what Naruto retorted, he continued on anyway. "Why?"

"I am assigned in the worst team."

Minato couldn't help but smirk at her answer. "And why is that?"

"I'm teamed up with that prick Uchiha Sasuke, Haruno Sakura who hates me for some reason…OH! In addition, do not forget my newest and most arrogant sensei I have ever had… Kakashi-sensei... Argh! What more worst can happen, ne?" Naruto complained, shifting her body, turning towards the older man.

A surprised and an amused look appeared on Minato's face. He never would have thought that his former student would be the sensei of her daughter. "Kakashi? He's a good man… he'll be a good sensei…"

Naruto scoffed at her otou-san's reply. "Don't tell me… I'll never believe you… he's always late…"

"Yeah," said Minato. "But…" he pondered back to the past for a brief moment, the time of The Third Great Shinobi War, the time when his genin team and him traveled to Iwagakure, the time when his team came back to Konoha with one member short… "..He has a good reason…"

A curious face showed up on Naruto's face then. Was there some true reason behind her new sensei's lateness? "What do you mean?"

He sighed. "That is something for another day."

Naruto mentally huffed, but her otou-san sounded serious, so she decided to drop the subject for now. A few minutes passed where father and daughter were just gazing up in the clear, night sky.

"Otou-san," Naruto said, breaking the silence. "Kakashi-sensei that tomorrow there's going to be a survival test to determine if my team will become genins or not. Do you know what it's going to be?"

He smiled inwardly to himself. If he had to guess, he would probably say the bell test, the same test he gave his students, the same test that his sensei gave to him, and so forth. He could still remember his bell test like it was just yesterday…

"_DAMN!" An unruly swear could be heard throughout the training area, sending startled birds flying to a more tranquil haven. Two figures, a boy and a girl both at the age of twelve, slightly flinched at the shout coming from their other teammate about twenty yards away. Their survival test was now over. They had to get a bell from their sensei before the timer went off. To make a long story short, they all failed._

"_It's too late to be angry—you didn't get the bells," said their sensei, standing near the spot where the rambunctious brat had curse._

"_But I was close! That's not fair!" argued a blonde haired boy, tied up in the center of the three wooden posts. This boy, Namikaze Minato, was fairly covered with dirt, but that didn't prevent his spiky blonde haired to poke through._

"_It doesn't matter. On a mission, there's no such thing as being 'close.'"_

"_But why am I the only one who's tied up?" He struggled against his bounds in emphasis._

"_Your trap was a complete failure, you didn't pay any attention to my movements," stated the white haired jounin, leaning forward so he was in direct line with his student's face._

"_Besides which…" he grabbed the two untouched bells from his side, jingling as he clutched the ends in his fist._

"_Don't EVER try to trick the Great Jiraiya again!" he screamed, his face showing complete anger. He raised his fist up, fuming at the mere memory of that event. A deadpanned look appeared on Minato's face. '…That's why…'_

_All he did was his 'Operation Overload.' Nothing serious, just some traps here and there, dozens of kunais and shuriken flying at him, paint buckets dropping their contents on him, eggs, tomatoes, banana peels, smacking down at him. His sensei triggered many paper bombs and sensory bombs after he got out of 'Phase 1'. There were many nets and holes all around the places he landed, but thankfully for him, he managed to escape all of them. Well, okay not all of them. One of the holes was hidden in many layers of Genjutsu and his sensei was about to jump out of its general direction, but a rain of senbon needles distracted him and he ended up falling in it. Now falling into a hole wouldn't have been so bad if it wasn't filled half way with very thick honey, feathers, glitter and confetti. But what was even worse was that at that moment, a bee hive was thrown in. Yup, nothing serious. Though he did had to clean up after the timer went off, and he did lost his __hite-ate somewhere in the process, but he didn't die!_

_Jiraiya turned his attention to the sky now, his mood changing. "But, even if none of you managed to get the bells, I think I'll take you three as my team. I suppose you weren't so bad."_

_Minato lowered his head, his bangs covering up his eyes as if he had just heard the most grieving news possible. _

"_Hey did you hear me?" Jiraiya said, sensing his drastic change in demeanor._

"_Don't make that face—you passed! From now on, I'll teach you…" he was cut off by the voice of his tied-up student._

"_In that case, sensei, you're gonna teach…" he lifted his head in with determine look in his blue eyes, showing off his trademark grin. "The future Yondaime!" he finished off._

_Silence ensue the field for quite a while. Then, Jiraiya smiled down at Minato, a light smirk spreading on his face, breaking the tense atmosphere. 'What an interesting kid…'_

_Minato's face lit up, now back to his cheerful, talkative self again. "So when do we start real missions?"_

_Jiraiya let the kid blabber on, his thoughts focused somewhere else now. 'I was sure that he'd complete his training. He has real talent – and is so eager to learn… But talent alone ain't enough.'_

"_Will you teach us some awesome jutsus?"_

'_Gaki, I tied you here to see if you have a will to fight, and you managed to surprise me completely…'_

"_Jiraiya-sensei?" Minato said, his attitude changing at his sensei's lack of response to his questions._

_A slicing sound of a kunai to a rope was all that was heard. As quick as the ropes were bound around the boy, they now fell in pieces around his feet. Jiraiya kneeled down in front of Minato, a surprised look appeared on the blonde's face._ "_You know, I think people should enjoy the simple pleasures in life, but at the same time we should always try to reach high," consoled the jounin._

"_Even if it might me hard or impossible." Jiraiya silently thought of a pissed-off Tsunade, kicking him one hundred miles away from civilization after he had asked her to go out with him for the up-tenth time. He silently cried inside from the still throbbing pain. _

"_Anyway, I just want you to know" he said, standing up, "I like people with dreams like yours." Minato's eyes widen at his sensei's statement. He… was the first one who ever acknowledged his goal, his dream…_

"_Heh - enough talking. Go tell your teammates the good news, and I'll look for my __hite-ate."_

"_Sure!" Minato said smiling, running off to his teammates' location. Jiraiya glanced back at his retreating form, grinning slightly. Suddenly, Minato skidded to a halt, twisting around to face his sensei's back. "Sensei!"_

_Jiraiya looked over his shoulder in query. "But you know, I was serious!"_

_Minato's eyes burned with confidence, his grin not wavering. "I'm not going to lose. I won't die… 'till I become Yondaime Hokage!"_

He shook his head at that fond memory. Turning to face his daughter, he lightly ruffled her hair, earning a pout face in return. "Gomen, Naru-chan. That wouldn't be fair." Naruto groan in defeat, receiving a chuckle out of her father.

"But…" he began, making Naruto's ears perked up. "I will help you in preparing for the test."

Naruto's face glowed into one of excitement, her eyes sparkling under the moon. "Really, otou-san? What is it? A new ninjutsu?"

"No… it's our family's fighting style." That grabbed Naruto's attention fully, her anticipation altering to one of mute awe.

"Do you remember when you defeated Mizuki at the forest yesterday?" Minato met her daughter's gaze, cerulean eyes meeting cerulean eyes.

"Hai. All I remember was wanting to get revenge on him.. for what he did. Suddenly, my body was surrounded by this golden aura…"

Minato nodded, fully remembering that event. "That, Naru-chan, is the basic step of one of my signature moves, the Hiraishin no Jutsu. To fully master that technique, you first must learn the Namikaze Style."

* * *

**Credit for the responsible, homekeeper Naruto idea goes to Hikory. :D**

**Now, I know that I kinda squished episodes 2 and 3 together, but I didn't really want to write a whole chapter on Naruto's and Konohamaru's acquaintance..**

**Some of you peoples might be disappointed at how Itachi deals with his mother, or you guys wanted him to get in trouble (if you do, then you're a sadist! ..XD). Well, he is, but not right now. It's going to be a while before he does. And yes, Shisui's still alive, since Itachi didn't kill his entire clan and all. He's still going have the Mangekyou Sharingan, but he got it in a different way. It'll be revealed in due time.**

**I know that the Uchiha flashback was bad, don't rub it in!**

_**[moving on] So**_**…don't you peoples just love Sasuke's new ambition or don't you peoples just love Sasuke's new ambition? Guess who he's referring to… ;)**


	5. The Bell Test

**Author's Notes:** YAY! 100 reviews! Finally reached it! Thank you to all of you who reviewed. ＼( ' v ' )／

**Summary: **She looks up to gaze at his coal obsidian eyes as he gazes downward at her enchanting sky blue eyes. They both thought, _"Is this love?"_ Who says opposites can't attract? SasuFemNaru… MORE PAIRINGS INSIDE

**Pairings: **SasuFemNaru, ItaFemKyuu, LeeSaku, NejiTen, ShikaTema, KibaHina, ChouIno

**Warnings:** OOC-ness, language

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto

* * *

**Kesshite Wasuremasu  
**_by Aesura_

_**The Bell Test**_

* * *

Night time pasted quickly as it quickly turned into 5 AM in the morning, almost an hour and thirty minutes before the sun would begin rising over the horizon to signal the dawn of a new day. Three figures could be seen walking from different directions to the center of the training ground.

"Ohayo…" Sakura greeted, rubbing her eyes of sleep.

"..."

"Hey…" muttered Naruto, arriving lifeless and drained of energy.

The three genin all stood there at the meeting place, waiting on Kakashi. The sun hadn't even risen and the sky was still dark, stars still apparent. The air was chilly, and the field was quiet, with only the early birds crying a few calls every now and then. Soon, night turned into dawn. Dawn became early morning. Early morning elapsed to mid-morning, then late morning. It was 11 o'clock now and there was still no sign of their sensei. Naruto was sitting on the ground hugging her knees, a fuming demeanor emitting from her being. Sakura was in a similar position, but she was waiting with a bored and tired expression. As for Sasuke, he just stood there coolly, but even his patients were wearing thin, especially since he had been waiting for five fucking hours.

Finally, their sensei poofed in. Kakashi smiled beneath his mask and waved. "Yo."

"YOU'RE LATE!" Naruto and Sakura shouted in unison, jumping to their feet with a pissed off look on either faces.

Kakashi smiled sheepishly, his eyes mirroring an upside-down 'U'. "Sorry I'm late. A black cat crossed my path, so-"

Naruto and Sakura yelled again, "YOU'RE LYING!"

He looked at his students' heated glares before giving them a brief cough, signaling the end of their little quarrel. "Let's move on…"

He sauntered over and placed a large timer clock that he procured from his pouch and placed it on a wooden tree log. "Alarm set at 12 PM."

He turned to the three holding out a pair of bells dangling from some string. "Today's topic is to get one of these bells from me. Whoever can't will have no lunch. I'm going to tie you there," he pointed to the three wooden logs where he had placed the timer, "and eat lunch in front of you."

"_Sadistic bastard,"_ thought Naruto, feeling her stomach growl. "_That's why he said not to eat breakfast."_

"But wait, why are there two bells?" Sakura asked, after a moment's hesitation.

Kakashi smiled under his mask again. "Since there's only two, at least one will have to be tied to the log. That person will fail since they failed to complete the mission. The person will go back to the Academy. It might be just one or all three."

The students looked at their sensei, taken aback that one of them would have to be sent back to the academy. Kakashi's smiling gesture was replaced by a calm and cool expression. "You can use your shuriken. You won't be able to get these bells unless you come at me with killer intent," he explained, clutching the bells in his hands.

"But that's too dangerous, Sensei!" Sakura complained.

"Lesson one in being a shinobi," Kakashi spoke out, holding up his index finger, "never underestimate your opponent. In the shinobi world, hesitating even for a second in battle could lead you to your death," he stated, shutting up the pinkette.

"We're going to start," Kakashi affirmed, his eyes still half-lidded. "Ready…" he drawled out.

The three genin all visibly tensed.

"Start!"

And the survival exam begins with an explosive start as three shadows flashed into the forest field.

* * *

Standing around the area, Kakashi looked for the three genin. _"A basic skill for a ninja is to conceal their presence and hide."_

He noticed that they were all very good at hiding. Yet, he could still feel two faint chakra signatures coming from within the forest, one lesser than the other. He wasn't worried of not being able to sense his sensei's daughter, seeing that she might just be farther out within the forest where he couldn't sensed that far out. But, little did he know that Naruto was actually within the same perimeter as her other two teammates, concealing her chakra from the three. It took a hell of a lot of practice for her to master that technique, since she had such horrible chakra control to start with, but after a few years of sharpening her skills, she finally got it packed down.

Kakashi scanned the vicinity again. Seeing that he had to make the first move, Kakashi mentally sighed as he reached into his pouch and pulling out a…

Immediately, all the genins' attention was on Kakashi. Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke tensed, thinking it might be some sort of weapon. He took out a little orange book. All three students face faulted; they expected more from a jounin. Kakashi began to read the book as he casually stood in the clearing, not really searching for his students, while Naruto stared at the book in his hands.

"_Wasn't that the same book that otou-san wanted to kill Kakashi-sensei for?"_

"_Otou-saaannn. Why can't I go to work with you?"__ asked a very innocent four year old Naruto, tugging on her father's pants. She pouted when he didn't answer her question right away. Couldn't he see the look of impatience on her face? Well… probably not, since she only ended up at her father's waste line. Sigh. Being short does have its disadvantages._

_The two of them were walking down the Konoha street, receiving greetings and bows along the way. The Yondaime waved back half-enthusiastically, his mind somewhere else. He had indeed heard his precious daughter's question, the mere query bringing back the thought of what happened last time when she accompanied him to work. Let's just say that she should've left her crayons at home and he should have placed his paperwork where his daughter couldn't reach them._

"_Otou-ssaaaaaaaannnnnnn," Naruto whined again, snapping Minato out of his not-so-pleasant reverie. The young girl now had both of her tiny hands clasped on to his two fingers, shaking them back and forth relentlessly. The elder of the two looked down at his persistent child. "Yes, Naru-chan?"_

"_You never answewed my question."_

_Minato laughed sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. "Anou.., my office is really boring for a little hyperactive girl like you. Plus, I have to go to a council meeting, so..- "_

_Naruto started to protest. "But, but.. I want to stay with you, otou-san.." She pulled out those irresistible puppy eyes, the memorizing blue orbs that got her anything she wanted._

_Now, as the Yondaime, he wasn't fazed by anything. Not by his enemies the L__egendary Sannin Orochimaru or even the Tsuchikage of Iwagakure__. No, not he, one who had faced off against the legendary Kyuubi and lived to tell the tale. The Yondaime of Konoha was not fazed by nothing, absolutely nothing.__ So why the hell was he suddenly feeling his resistance crumbling when his cerulean eyes glanced down to stare into the pleading gaze of a blue so similar to his?_

_When Minato felt his internal conflict falling towards Naruto's wanted choice, a voice abruptly broke his train of thought. "Yo, sensei. Sorry I'm late. You see, I got lost on the road of life."_

_Looking over at the source of the familiar voice, Minato sighed at the man with the Konoha __hitai-ate__ over one of his eye.__ "Same excuse as always, eh Kakashi?" Naruto's eyes widened in glee at the off-duty ANBU captain. "Kakashi-oji!"_

_With his visible eye, Kakashi glanced down at the four year old, smiling behind his mask. "Ah, Naruto-chan. How is my little blondie?"_

_Naruto immediately glared at the copy-nin, but since she doesn't have the look to glare, it only came out at a pout. "Hey! Don't call me blondie!"_

_Kakashi chuckled at her response. That was how he and the little blonde usually started their talks. He calls her blondie, she gets mad, and the conversation carries out from there. "Maa, Naruto-chan. Let's leave your otou-san to his busy work schedule today. Come on," Kakashi said as he lifted Naruto so she was riding on his neck with both legs dangling on either sides of his face. "Let's go get some ice cream."_

_Naruto's face lightened up at the word 'ice cream'. "Yay! Ice cweam! Kakashi-oji, you're the best!" Naruto giggled as she held on to his silver hair. "Now mush doggy!" she shouted playfully, pointing towards the direction of the nearest ice cream shop. _

"_Okay, otou-san, you can go to work now!" Naruto shouted over her shoulder as she and Kakashi walked down the street, neither of them noticing the gaped look on the Yondaime's face as a tumbleweed rolled passed by him._

_Just then, two ANBU members appeared next to the Yondaime. Bowing in respect first, the one with the bear mask avowed, "Hokage-sama. You're needed at the council meeting."_

_When they got no response from their leader, the two ANBU looked at him, only sweatdropping when they saw a tearful look running down his face. Sighing, both ANBU walked to either side of the Yondaime, latched an arm on his, and dragged him away to the direction of the Hokage Tower, the one being hauled leaving skid marks in the dirt road. Apparently, they're used to this._

_A pleasant breeze brushed passed Naruto's hair as a lone leaf fell on top of her nose, causing her to sneeze and sit upright. She was now sitting lazily at a training ground with Kakashi, the latter sitting against a tree a few meters away from her, reading an orange book._

_It's been a few hours since they'd eaten their ice cream cones, hers being three scoops while Kakashi only one. As she ate hers wholeheartingly, glanced over at Kakashi, only to see that his ice cream cone was no longer there. It still confuses Naruto on how Kakashi could eat his ice cream cone without taking off his mask. Was it some kind of advanced jutsu? 'I know! I'll go ask him!'_

_As she came closer to the silver haired man, she noticed him giggling as he read that book. Questioningly, she came up next to him, leaning over his shoulder, though still not being able to see the context in the book._

_She tugged at his sleeve. "Hey Kakashi-oji, what are you weading?" she asked the man as he looked at the little girl. Curiosity showing in her eyes, wanting to know why the man she considered as her uncle was giggling and blushing so much._

_"You wanna see?" he asked while his visible eye curved into a 'U' like fashion. She nodded eagerly hopping to see what made her daddy's student so happy. Even though Kakashi lowered the book for Naruto, she still had to stand on her tip-toes to read the text. 'As Keiko moaned in pleasure, Matsu felt an e-'_

_Huh? In the four years of her life, Naruto had never seen that word before. 'Ew..o… E..wo..t…'_

_At the exact moment, Minato just happened to be walking to Training Ground 7 to pick up his daughter, the most likely place where Naruto and Kakashi should be. As Naruto was trying with difficulty to read the big words in the book, Minato who had been witnessing this whole ordeal, appeared and took the book and threw at the floor and did a Katon jutsu. Well you can imagine what happen to the book. He looked over at his former student. "If I ever see you with that book around my daughter again, that book won't be the only thing being burn."_

_With that, the Yondaime lifted Naruto over his shoulder and started walking away from crying man who had just witness the brutal murder of his beloved book with Naruto waving while saying "Bye!" over her father's shoulder._

_Naru examined the man after say bye. He was crying, why was he crying? And why did otou-san burned his book?_

_Being the innocent four year old that she is, she asked, "Otou-san, why was __Kakashi-oji__ crying over his book and why did you burn it?" she asked her father, though she couldn't see a small light blush crept through his skin. "Naru-chan, that book is not appropriate for a little girl to be reading."_

_"Why?"_

_"...It has adult themes that you're not old enough to comprehend."_

_"Uuuuhh.. What does it have?"_

_"..."_

_"Have you wead it before, otou-san?"_

_"..."_

_"You did, didn't you?"_

_"No."_

_"Then how do you know what that book has?"_

_"It says on back of the book the age suitable for reading."_

_"Is it a bad book?"_

_"Hai, and it's best you never, and I repeat __**never**__, try to read that book at all."_

_"Then why does __Kakashi-oji__ wead it?"_

"_Probably because of my sensei's teachings.." His voice was laced over with venom, which earned a questioning stare from Naruto._

_"So Jiwaiya-jiji wrote that book?"_

"_Hai."_

_"Why?"_

"_Probably because of his sick thinking…" he mused crossly._

"_Sick? Jiwaiya-jiji is sick?"_

"_No, Naru-chan."_

"_But you just said that he was."_

"_It's just an expression."_

"_..Oh…okay…" Naruto lingered off, confused by the big word her father used. And speaking of big words…_

"_Otou-san, what does ewotic mean?"_

_"…!…" The Yondaime fully turned his attention to his daughter now, his eyes nearly bulging out of their sockets. Where had his Naru-chan learned such an adulterated word?_

_"Do you get ewotic too?"_

_"…!..."_

_"Do all the guys get ewotic too? Do older women get ewotic too? Why won't you tell me what ewotic means? Is it a bad word?"_

_"Naru-chan," his voice was a bit shaky. He seriously needed to think a way out. Hell, half of those questions she was asking him, he has no answer to._

'_Think, think. I need a distraction, curse you Kakashi!'_

_Naruto pouted as she tried to get her father's attention for the umptenth time. Finally, she had enough. "Otou-san, if you won't tell me what that word means, then I'll keep saying it until you do!"_

_That got his attention. "N-NANI? No, Naru-chan, don-"_

"_Ewotic, Ewotic, Ewotic," Naruto repeated in a continuous pace. In alarm, the panicking blonde quickly covered his daughter's mouth, hoping to stop her chatter, but to his dismay, it didn't alter her attitude one bit._

"_Mnnhmnm, Mnnhmnm, Mnnhmnm," she kept saying in a sing-song tone._

_Minato started sweating as he scanned left and right for a solution to his dilemma, oblivious to the stares he's getting from passerbies. What will make his daughter stop saying that word? Suddenly, the scent of his and hers favorite food came wafting up his nostrils. "Naru-chan, let's eat," he said, placing Naruto down on to the ground as he removed his hand from her mouth._

_Hearing something about eating food, she decided to put her curiosity on hold. "Yatta! Let's go to Ichiwaku!"_

_Minato watched at his daughter hurried ahead of him, climbing on to one of the ramen stand's seats with much difficultly. He sighed in relief, following into the stand to he could help his little girl up. 'At least I have more time to think of a way out of this mess…'_

_The following day, the Sandaime was strolling down the streets of Konoha, enjoying the lively atmosphere hovering above the area. Nothing could possibly ruin his day. Soon, a small tug on his clothing interrupted his thoughts. He looked down, spotting Naruto looking up at him with her sky blue eyes. Sarutobi smiled at her warmly. "Yes Naruto-chan?"_

_"Otou-san said you could answer my questions."_

_"If he said I could then go ahead and ask."_

_Naruto beamed, finally answers will be given. "What does ewotic mean? Why does __Kakashi-oji__ wead a stwange owange book when otou-san said it was a bad book? Why does he blush and giggle when he weads them? Otou-san told me Jiwaiya-jiji writes them, so does that mean he blushes and giggles too? Do you wead them too?"_

_While Naurto continued asking Sarutobi began sweating. What the hell was he supposed to tell the four year old?_

A growl from her empty stomach awakened her from her reminiscence. She clutched her rumbling abdomen in an attempt to quiet it down. _"If I keep hiding here like this, then I won't have time to get one of those fucking bells!"_

Making up her mind, Naruto silently crept up to the closest tree near her sensei. He stood there, still unaware to her location, reading that perverted book of his. _"Heh, you're in for one hell of a surprise, Kakashi-sensei."_

She then reached into her shuriken holster and pulled three out. She stood from the branch she was standing on and threw them consecutively at her sensei. Kakashi jumped up, with the book still in his hand, but moved to his right a little to avoid the shuriken. Naruto pulled a few more out and threw them at her sensei, forcing Kakashi to move more and more to his right. Naruto smirked.

"**SHURIKEN KAGE BUNSHIN NO JUTSU"**

"What the-"

Kakashi's eyes widened as a pillage of shuriken started flying at him. He jumped to left rapidly, only to find him face-to-face with a tree. He looked behind him to find a way to dodge the incoming projectiles, but his luck fell short as trees arranged tightly packed together blocked his escape. _"She purposely cornered me into this spot, so that I couldn't dodge her attacks. Very clever of you, Naruto. But…"_ Kakashi put his book away as he looked over to a nearby lake. _"Not clever enough."_

**"NINPOU SUITON: SUIJINHEKI"**

Two pillars of water rose from a nearby lake and quickly snaked its way towards Kakashi, forming a protective dome, preventing any of the launched shurikens from hurting him. Once all of the missiles fell to the ground in a clatter, he released his jutsu.

"_The weapons were efficient and executed in so little time. I was even forced to move exactly as she wanted me to. I guess she didn't plan for me to use suijinheki." _He started clapping and stated blatantly, "Wonderful, Naruto. I'm impressed. You can come out now."

Naruto grinned from the tree she was on and jumped down to land gracefully in front of Kakashi. "Glad you enjoyed it," she replied, "but it looks like I'll have to get serious soon. I still have to get that bell from you."

"That you do." Kakashi got into a loose fighting form, his right leg a few steps in front of his left as his fist were placed cautiously in front of his body. "Ninja tactic number one: Taijutsu. I'll teach you that first."

Naruto got into her stance too, her legs slightly spread apart with her knees bent forward, perfect for making a fleet dash. Her hands were curved into semi fists, more narrowed into hitting pressure points than landing external blows.

Kakashi's eyebrows rose in interest. _"So, Minato-sensei. You've already taught your daughter your family taijutsu. Still…, I'm determined not to lose to a genin, whether she's your daughter or not."_

_A few minutes passed by, and the night was still young with the moon shining from above, bathing the foliage in an incandescent light. Two figures faced each other in their own personal private training ground, littered with trees, traps, and special training dummies, behind an immense mansion. The blonde haired girl sat on the ground, listening intently as her otou-san explained their family taijutsu style._

_Minato cleared his throat, beginning the explanation. "The Namikaze Style is also known as the Inbijiburu Shitai Style. That is because those who use it move so fast that they appear to be invisible. The stance," he got into the family taijutsu position, "is designed to be more silent and lethal, aimed to hitting pressure points rather than breaking bones. When using our family style is combined with the Hiraishin.." The Yondaime disappeared from his former spot in a yellow flash, appearing next to one of the training dummies in a few seconds. "The damage done to the enemy is deadly." The dummy then collapsed onto the ground in the 'thud', the wounds penetrating deep enough to crack the exterior. _

_Naruto was just sitting on the ground with an awe expression on her face. "..So, how will my training go, exactly?"_

"_Well, to start off, you will wake up every day at six o'clock in the morning," said the Yondaime, "get ready, eat breakfast, and make your way to our private training ground by six thirty AM. Begin your warm-ups by doing one hundred push-ups, one hundred sit-ups, and one hundred laps around the field. No complaining and no stopping until you finish your exercises."_

_Naruto's mouth was hanging open by the time her father had finished. "Since you have your survival test tomorrow, begin your training now."_

"_NANI?"_

"_I never said that my training régime will be easy. …Don't tell me you're chickening out __already__?" That got his daughter's attention._

"_No way!" Naruto stood up, and with an air full of determination, she stride over to the nearest tree and was about to began her one hundred push-ups, until her otou-san's voice interrupted her._

"_Oh, and Naru-chan.." He pulled out a scroll from his pouch, unraveled it, and bit his thumb, spreading the newly drawn blood on the parchment. In a puff of smoke, a full set of weights appeared: one torso body armor and two pairs of arm and leg weights, both for the lower and upper parts of the limbs. Picking up the weights with ease, he walked over to his daughter._

_Seeing the questioning look on her face, Minato enlightened, "These are a special set of weights, designed specifically for the Namikazes. Unlike regular weights, these adjust to your increasing strength. When you can continue daily life with the standard weight capacity, the weights will then intensify to a higher number. Mastering the Inbijiburu Shitai Style requires long and hard training with these special set of weights so that the user can move rapidly, even with them on. However, the true power of this style comes when the weights are taken off. The user is then able to move at such incredible speeds that could break the sound barrier, making them seem to be invisible most of the time" When he was done clarifying, he handed her the weights._

_As soon as the weights were placed in her hands, she collapsed to the ground, the weights cracking the earth in an instant. "UWAAHH! These are heavy!" She struggled to get up. Naruto didn't know how her otou-san could've lifted them like they were nothing but a stack of pillows._

"_Better get used to them, since those weights are 50 pounds each. No daughter of mine will be taking shortcuts."_

"_NANI?"_

A light wind blew and a few leaves fell from the trees surrounding. A big, green maple leaf was the last one to fall, lightly spinning in the wind. The moment that leaf landed, the two shinobi lunged at each other. Kakashi's fists were more cautious, yet powerful, while Naruto's attacks tended to be somewhat swifter with unexpected blows. Though not heavily concentrated on the offense side, Naruto had an advantage. Kakashi would not know what to expect from her form. Kakashi, however, still was able to land his powerful strikes. One would push the other back, and then when he thought he had the lead, the other would push him. In the sparring match, it seemed impossible to figure out who was winning.

When Naruto saw that their constant brawling wasn't getting her anywhere, she pumped a bit of chakra into the soles of her feet, propelling herself into the air. Kakashi immediately figured out her plan and raised his arms to block her brisk spin kick. _"Ah yes." _He thought to himself. _"I had forgotten how fast this style actually was."_

Kakashi grabbed her legs and with a flick of his wrist, sent her hurtling to a tree. Sensing this, Naruto flipped in mid-air and used the tree to propel herself back towards the silver haired jounin. "You'll have to do better than that!"

On the sidelines watching were the other two members of Team Seven, forgotten and discarded. The two were in awe as they watched the jounin and genin fight at what seemed to be equal grounds. The two were moving blurs, moving as quickly as possible to try to gain an advantage in vain. _"So this is what it means to become a jounin," _Sasuke thought to himself.

"_This is Naruto?" _Sakura couldn't believe her eyes. She was so strong! Her attacks were like fluid in their movements and she blocked all blows to her as if she had trained those responses for years. _"How can she be so strong?"_

"Hah!" Naruto sent a rather powerful blow towards Kakashi and although the jounin was able to block it, the force of the strike alone sent him tumbling a few steps back. Seeing her chance, Naruto rushed forward and prepared to swipe away his legs.

What she didn't expect was for Kakashi to fall on his hands and grapple her legs with his own. _"Ugh! His grip is strong!" _Try as she might, Naruto couldn't get her legs free. Suddenly, Kakashi twisted his hips and with a flip of his legs, threw the startled blonde away. _"Damn it!"_

Naruto quickly got her bearings just in time to block a spin kick from Kakashi. The attack was powerful and Naruto was forced to step back. Kakashi was relentless. He wouldn't let her up even for a moment. Soon, punch after punch slammed onto Naruto's weighted arms. _"Ugh… if I don't do something quick, I'll just be a sitting duck!" _Thinking fast, she knocked one punch off course and dove in between them. When close enough, she delivered a hit a pressure point near her sensei's stomach.

The blonde was immediately rewarded with a grunt from the jounin but her victory was short lived. Kakashi had grabbed her arm and with a sound of exertion, threw her away. He then hunched over and held onto his stomach as he gasped for air.

"_Nani… she's…"_ Kakashi ducked as Naruto came rushing back, her foot narrowly missed its target. "_Suddenly… improved…"_

Twisting around from her previous kick, Naruto landed hand-first, pushing herself off the ground and performing a back flip to obtain some distance from her opponent. Still in mid-flip, she executed the necessary hand seals.

"**REPPUSHOU"**

A strong gust of wind blasted in the copy-nin's general direction, driving him back a couple of feet. Naruto suddenly landed a few meters back from her opponent as her hand suddenly whipped out from her side and threw a kunai at the silver haired man, lips bared back into a feral grin. With her jutsu in play, her weapons, with the wind's help, can increase in power and deadliness. "Take this!"

Kakashi caught the dangerous projectile with his index finger and thumb. However, he noticed the explosive note cleverly attached to the handle a little too late as Naruto eerily had a smirk plastered to her face.

The jounin's eyes widened as the note sparked to life by a tiny flame. Within a second, the weapon had exploded into a thick cloud of smoke that obscured the air. Naruto pumped chakra to her legs again, sending herself airborne ten feet up and out of the hazy mist of explosives. She landed with the accuracy of a cat onto a clear patch of grass, grinning widely.

"Heh… bang!" The blonde grinned cockily as she turned her head to her handiwork. Not that she could see it anyways. Suddenly, a chill ran down his spine as she realized that she had something was gently brushing against her neck… the cool touch of a metal edge.

Kakashi stood right behind her, one hand grasping Naruto's wrists and the other a kunai, forcing it closer to her neck. Naruto and her two teammates were alarmed, not only at her predicament, but also at how fast their sensei actually moved. "A ninja should not let the enemy get behind them," Kakashi whispered dangerously.

Sweat dripped down her forehead as she felt the cold blade press gently into her skin, daring not to breathe for fear of impaling herself. Irregular heartbeats thumped against her chest, as the thick smoke cloud slowly blew away. _"Kuso…!"_

"_Naruto!" _Sasuke balled his fist until his knuckles turned white, thinking of a way to rescue his teammate before it was too late. Kakashi wouldn't go as far as to kill her…would he?

Sasuke's eyes narrowed and he clenched his teeth. Finally, he noticed a blind spot. Kakashi actually dropped his guard. This was his only chance to get him now! Grasping multiple kunai and shuriken between his fingers, he thrust his arms forward and fanned out the throwing weapons to hit his sensei from multiple angles. "I got you!" he growled through clenched teeth.

Naruto stared in horror as the jounin was struck by multiple kunai and shuriken behind her, his grip on her now freed. His eyes rolled up into the back of his head and he fell forward onto his face. "Kakashi-sensei! Sasuke, you overdid it!"

The blonde turned her attention back to her wounded sensei, only to stare wide-eyed at his location. "Huh?" Kakashi's body turned into a log. "Damn! He got away!" Naruto fumed as she jumped into the foliage.

"Kuso!" Sasuke cursed, moving deeper into the woods for further concealment. "_Damn it! He purposely left himself open for that attack to find my location. He even used Naruto as bait to get that reaction out of me, toying with my feelings to get me to save her like that."_

Somewhere near the fleeing genin, a lone half-lidded eye followed his movements in the leafy canopy. An ominous feeling of dread slowly settled in over the area as the figure reached into his weapon pouch. "There he is."

* * *

Sakura also started running after Kakashi turned into a log. When she gasped after seeing him get hit, she was worried to what would happen to their sensei because of that accident. But when she saw the kawarimi take his place, she ran.

"_Where is Sasuke-kun? Did Kakashi-sensei already get him...?"_ She thought, running through the forest looking for her crush. "_No, that can't happen to Sasuke-kun!"_

Catching a brief sight of Kakashi out of the corner of her eye, Sakura quickly hid in a nearby row of bushes. Peeking around the corner, the pink haired kunocihi observed. "_I'm safe, he didn't notice me."_

"Sakura, behind you."

Sakura turned around at hearing the deep voice. There Kakashi squatted down behind her, staring at her lazily. "AAAAAHHH!"

Kakashi formed his hands into the _Rat_ seal. Leaves suddenly started to blow her way before circling around her instead of the jounin. Not even realizing, Sakura's eyes glazed over a little bit and became half-lidded. Just as suddenly as it happened, the leaves fell to the ground and Sakura's eyes obtained life again. Yet, the silver haired man was no where to be found. "Nani? What was that? Hey, where did Kakashi-sensei go?"

"Sakura…" a weak, almost nonexistent voice called out to the girl from behind her.

"_That sounded like…"_ Sakura thought as she whirled around to face the speaker and shouted in delight, "Sasuke-kun!"

Instead of seeing Sasuke like she pictured him, her eyes were greeted with a horrifying sight. Sasuke sat on his knees, his hand resting against the base of a tree trunk to steady his balance, wounds covering all over his body. Blood poured out of his body from the many injuries caused by the weapons that littered his body. His left leg twisted in an unnatural direction that gave a slim, if any, hope left of being movable again. But, what shocked her the most was the fact that Sasuke's right arm was clearly cleaver off right above the elbow, completely gone from its former location.

Then the mouth moved.

"S-Sakura... help.. me..." the decrepit and bloodied Sasuke pleaded with his last breathes, his ragged and shallow breathing coming out in painful pants. Just by looking at the raven could anyone tell that he was about to collapse by the immense amount of blood lost. Sakura's breath hitched in her throat, her face shifting to one of horror. She began to shake uncontrollably, tears forming on the edges of her eyes.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!" the girl screamed into a dead faint.

And off to the side, Kakashi observed, shaking his head in disappointment.

"Maybe I overdid it," Kakashi mused out loud from his hiding place, monitoring the effects of the genjutsu he had placed on Sakura, as well as reading his book. He flipped over to the next page. "But she should have noticed if it was real or not."

* * *

Sasuke's head turned to the side to the direction of the scream. _"That must've been Sakura's voice."_

"Ninja tactics number two: Genjutsu. Sakura fell for it so easily." Kakashi said, reading his book while leaning against a tree. The bells at his waist clanged together as he shifted his position slightly, regarding to the fact that no one has yet to take one of the bells yet.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes upon hearing the voice. "Genjutsu? A type of mind-controlling illusionary technique. It's no wonder she fell for it so easily. But, I'm not like her." Sasuke said, not bothering to look behind him where Kakashi actually was. His ambience seemed emotionless and composed, but his actions could tell otherwise. His eyes, which were fixed forward, seemed to be scanning the proximity for something. Or someone.

"Why don't you say that _after_ you get a bell, Sasuke," Kakashi said from behind him, leaning up against a tree. He moved from his location and stepped closer to the raven, his face calm and calculating. Sasuke turned to him, mimicking his visage. The Uchiha took one last look at his surroundings, again not being able to since any form of a certain kitsune-like girl's chakra signature.

A few seconds past, neither one of the two shinobis moving an inch, waiting for one of them to make the first move. A shrill wind passed by the area, sending Sasuke to a slight crouch position. He glowered at his opponent, throwing a half a dozen shuriken straight at Kakashi without any further warning. The jounin moved out of the way to his left, sliding across the ground for a few feet. "There's no use in just using normal attacks."

Sasuke's smirked as he threw a sole kunai in another direction. The sound of something cutting caught Kakashi's attention, jumping to the side, narrowly avoided being made a pincushion of kunai, hearing the faint sound of around twenty kunai planting themselves in the tree behind him.

Skidding to the end of his halt, Sasuke came around behind him with tremendous speed, which seemed to be in the chunnin level range, and aimed a spin kick towards his head. Letting his reaction skills take over, he blocked the boy's attack just in time. He seemed very skilled in the Uchiha clan style of taijutsu, probably from the one-on-one training he'd done with his older brother.

Having his ankle caught, Sasuke tried to deliver a punch towards the jounin's head in order to get him to release him, but instead the jounin just grabbed his fist with his free hand. Though that was just simple a diversion as Sasuke threw his weight to kick him with his free leg. Unfortunately, his ploy was discovered and blocked with an arm while still holding on to the two caught appendages. Sasuke smirked, reaching out with his free hand for the bells. With his sensei's arms preoccupied in holding his legs and arm in place, he now had free access in obtaining his prize.

Hearing the clinking of the bells being moved, Kakashi looked down just in time to see Sasuke circling his fingers around the bells. Before he could grab them, the silver haired man threw the raven forward while propelling himself backwards. That was too close. They needed to find out the meaning of the test, not accomplish it individually.

Landing a few meters away from each other, Kakashi stared down at the other genin who had managed to keep him on his toes. _"Looks like I don't have time to read Icha Icha Paradise when fighting him too."_

Sasuke glared at his sensei, still angry at the fact that wasn't able to get the bells after he had come so close.

"I admit it, you're different from Sakura," Kakashi said, snapping the Uchiha from his seething. Narrowing his eyes, Sasuke performed a set of hand seals as fast as he could, drawing on his chakra. Kakashi instantly recognized the jutsu, his eyes widening.

"_Horse. Tiger."_ Sasuke smirked and inhaled a big breath.

"_Nani? That techinique isn't something a genin could do…! He should have enough chakra,"_ Kakashi thought frantically. Sasuke inhaled a large quantity of air and released the jutsu right at the silver haired man.

**"****KATON: GOUKAKYUU NO JUTSU****"**

Fire streamed from Sasuke's mouth from a thin stream into one huge ball of flame. The ground and surrounding grass was immediately incinerated by the flaming ball. When the technique completed, everything within a five foot radius of where Kakashi stood was blackened.

"_He's gone!"_ Sasuke scanned around the area, surprised. _"Is he behind me? No, above? Damn it, where did he go?__"_

"Beneath you," a voice suddenly shouted out loud, halting Sasuke's attempts to locate him. A hand shot out of the ground and lacked onto his ankle.

"Nani—?"

"**DOTON: SHINJU ZANSHU NO JUTSU****"**

By the time Sasuke realized it, he sunk all the way down until only his head remained above the ground. He glared distastefully at Kakashi who was squatting in front of him with his usual upside-down 'U' expression. "This is the third ninja tactic: Ninjutsu. How is it? Can't move, right?"

Sasuke scowled at him, struggling to get out of the ground. Kakashi mentally laughed at his fruitless attempts. "Looks like your talents are exceptional. But…," the silver haired man continued as he stood up and started to walk away from the buried boy, "just because you're in the most elite family in Konohagakure doesn't mean that you could pass this test alone."

Sasuke watched his sensei walking away, his last words confusing him. What the hell does he mean not being able to pass this test alone? He'd almost gotten one of those fucking bells! "_Damn it!"_

When Kakashi disappeared, Sasuke brooded over how he could get out of this trap, until he heard a very familiar voice coming closer to his location. "..-suke-kun! …Sasuke-kun! Where are you?"

Sakura came running out of the bushes a couple of yards from Sasuke.

"Huh?" Sakura stared wide-eyed and fearfully at the head of Sasuke. The feeling of wishing to faint came over her but she fought it off. She looked at the head of Sasuke wearily. Sasuke blinked. "Sakura."

"WAAAAHH! NOW IT'S A SEVERED HEAD!" She fainted right on the spot… again.

Sasuke sweat-dropped. "What's wrong with her?"

_Thump._

The sound of someone landing a few feet away from him diverted his awareness to the newcomer. A familiar blonde with cerulean eyes gazed at his visible head with a raised eyebrow in amusement.

"Nani? Since when were you there?" He asked, not being able to sense her chakra presence until now.

"Shhh. You'll get me caught," Naruto simple whispered as she walked over to him and started digging into the hard earth with her bare hands, trying to free her trapped teammate.

"Why are you doing this? I'll just be going against you for a bell afterwards," Sasuke suddenly retorted, silently cursing himself for snapping at the blonde.

"Didn't I say to be quiet?"

"That didn't answered my question, dobe," the raven growled.

"Well deal with it, teme," Naruto countered as she kept on digging. The rest of the time spent digging the Uchiha out of the ground was in silence, which was actually not helping Sasuke's mood, since his mind was stuck on the fact that he couldn't do anything, being as he was, and it took Naruto almost twenty minutes just to dig his upper body out of the ground. However, once she'd struck a weak spot in the earth, she smashed her fist on to it, creating a crater. With the soil loosed around both his arms, the Uchiha, with Naruto's help, was able to pull himself out of the ground the rest of the way.

"Thanks," Sasuke mumbled embarrassingly, not used to being saved, as he brushed the dirt off of his clothes, not looking Naruto's way once he was freed.

The blonde narrowed her eyes angrily at the raven, ticked off at his attitude. He could have at least tried to act more sincere. "_You're_ welcome," Naruto shot back, crossing her arms in a huff. She turned her head to the side, not wanting to deal with the Uchiha right now. But something pink lying on the ground caught her interest. It kind of looks like…

"Hey, Sasuke. Isn't that Sakura?" Naruto asked, pointing over to the heap of red and pink. The dark haired genin glanced over at the direction she was pointing at, discerning that it was indeed Sakura, remembering how she'd fainted over their after seeing his only evident body part. Seriously, couldn't she tell whether that was a jutsu or not?

"Come on, dobe. Let's wake her up," he said, putting his hands in his pockets as he walked over to her prone body. Naruto bit back her comeback, catching up to the same stride as Sasuke.

Once hovering over her body, they kneeled down beside her, the blonde more concern for their teammate than the latter. "Sakura. Hey, Sakura. You alright?"

Opening her eyes, Sakura looked around the clearing groggily, wondering what happened to her. Gradually, the girl started to remember that she had seen Sasuke die in front of her and instantly woke up. She could make out Naruto calling out her name, the blonde's brows furrowed in slight worry. The pinkette turned her attention to the second presence next to the blonde. Once she saw Sasuke alive and well, she jolted up in a start, latching on to him tightly. "Sasuke-kun! You were okay!"

"Get off me!" Sasuke shouted, having to pry off the pink-haired fan girl. After a few moments of struggle, he stood and turned towards the direction of the three logs.

"You guys stay here. I'm going to get the bells."

"Who died and made you team leader? And what makes you think that you can get those two bells all by yourself? I'd gotten close enough to swipe one of them before!"

"I was able to touched one of the bells a while ago. I can get it this time."

While her two teammates continued to bicker at each other, Sakura's expression fell to one of defeat after hearing their almost successful attempts. _"Oh, this isn't fair… I can't even get a bell from Kakashi-sensei, let alone get near enough… I'm going to fail this test.. I have to try though… but he's a Jounin! I stand no chance against him! ..Arrh! __It didn't make any sense! Why would Kakashi-sensei purposely put us against one another? __We're supposed to be a team! …Wait..! "_

Sasuke turned around, about to venture off to search for their sensei. "There is a little time left until noon. I'm going."

Sakura interjected his plan. "Wait, Sasuke-kun! It's a trick! This is all psychological warfare, we get in groups of three to work as a team! There's no way a genin can keep up with a jounin alone, so we need each other for help."

Sasuke faced his teammates again. "Kakashi said-"

Naruto spoke, "Kakashi-sensei lied. I think that Sakura's right. This is about teamwork. It makes a hell of a lot more sense than what Kakashi-sensei told us to do." The three genin stared at one another. Sure they figured out the meaning behind this whole test, but.. what was to occur now?

Naruto broke the silence. "So, what now?"

Sakura smiled. "I've got a plan…"

* * *

Kakashi was currently grinning, laughing from time to time behind his Icha Icha Paradise novel. Suddenly, he jumped backwards as a hurdle of kunai flew at him. The dark-haired assailant jumped out from the trees and into view. He put book back in his pouch, expecting another one-on-one with the genin.

Kakashi spoke, "That won't work…"

Sasuke just smirked as his hands went through a series of rapid hand seals.

"**KATON:** **HOUSENKA NO JUTSU****"**

A wave of small fireballs flew from Sasuke's mouth, hastily targeting his sensei. Kakashi countered with his own Katon, although this was what the young Uchiha was hoping for. Sasuke, seizing this chance, canceled his fire technique and lunged forward, aiming for the man's blind spot. Kakashi, who somehow foresaw his attack, sidestepped neatly.

"Kuso!" Sasuke swore, twisting in midair to avoid being punched. However Kakashi with astonishing speed jumped up and kicked him clear across the clearing, the Uchiha boy painfully clutched his stomach and glared across at the jounin.

Standing up with difficulty, Sasuke yelled, "Now Sakura!"

Five Sakuras jumped out of the tree at him, all them drawing out a kunai for attack. Three of them landed on the ground, rushing towards the jounin, ready for combat. Kakashi's eyes widened slightly in mild interest. _"Kage bunshins instead of just bunshins?"_

The two Sakuras came closed enough to distract the copy-nin with their attacks as the third one moved in to swiped the bells, but with a quick flick of his wrist, Kakashi withdrew his own kunai from his holster, destroying the clones in one clean sweep. He thought back to the genin's status information he'd received from the Sandaime. _"Assuming from her abilities, these are just Naruto's kage bunshins placed under a henge."_

Looking down, he saw that his own shadow was getting considerably larger by the second, much to larger for his own person. Quickly, he raised his weapon, hearing the audible clash of kunai meeting kunai. _"Hm… the fourth Sakura has appeared.."_ he thought, annihilating the clone with fast reflexes. _"So.. the real one should be…" _

The pink haired girl had successfully sneaked behind the jounin without him noticing, until his hand suddenly whipped around and hurtfully gripped her wrist so tightly that she was so sure that her bones creaked. "Itai!"

"Right behind me…" Kakashi said in a lazy tone, slightly amused at the girl's dreadfully obvious attempts to creep around- her breathing was too loud and her footsteps were far too heavy. Using his momentum, he hurled her to Sasuke's propinquity. While still off the ground, Sakura threw her kunai at her sensei in one last attempt. Kakashi, expecting an attack like that, threw his own kunai at hers, canceling out her weapon.

Once she landed, the jounin immediately sensed something coming from above him. He glanced upward, spotting little balls descending around his being. When they got closer, Kakashi's visible eye dilated. "Smoke bombs..!" As soon as those words left his mouth, they struck land, exploding into a thick haze.

The silver haired jounin, who scanned the area once the smoke began to lessen, raised an eyebrow at the situation he's in. His eyes carefully taking in every detail of the scenario while his mind puzzled over this new turn of events. A small spark of hope flickered to life within him—maybe they could figure out the secret behind the true meaning of his little examination after all.

"**DOTON: TSUCHI TSUKAMU NO JUTSU"**

Something firm and hard latched on to Kakashi's ankles, not letting go. He looked down, only to see his feet surrounded by a pair of rock-molded hands, preventing any sort of escape for the time being. Surprised, he looked towards the direction of the jutsu's user, only making out through the smoke the male of the two genin having his hands slammed onto the ground, concluding that he was the one who had ensnared him. Suddenly, a voice from behind alerted him.

"**HIRAISHIN NO JUTSU"**

Kakashi's eyes widened at the name of that particular jutsu. He caught a yellow flash shooting out of a tree, speeding up towards him with incredible speed. He had never seen anyone used that move since the Yondaime… Though something was _off_ about the way his third student was moving…

Still, Kakashi was taken aback, leaving him and the bells an open target, and that's exactly what Naruto noticed. Perfect. She continued to speed towards him, outstretching her arm. Only one inch away…

_BBRIIINNNGGG!_

Too late. The alarm went off, halting Naruto in her tracks. The yellow flash diminished as Naruto anxiously looked up at Kakashi's face, his stunned expression calming down to his usual half-lidded one.

"Well, well. It seems that you three have failed my test. What will we do now?"


	6. Breaking New Ground

**Summary: **She looks up to gaze at his coal obsidian eyes as he gazes downward at her enchanting sky blue eyes. They both thought, _"Is this love?"_ Who says opposites can't attract? SasuFemNaru… MORE PAIRINGS INSIDE

**Pairings: **SasuFemNaru, ItaFemKyuu, LeeSaku, NejiTen, ShikaTema, KibaHina, ChouIno

**Warnings:** OOC-ness, language

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto

* * *

**Kesshite Wasuremasu  
**_by Aesura_

_**Breaking New Ground**_

* * *

Kakashi stared idly at the three genin in front of him. Naruto was tied up against the middle log, Sasuke sitting to her right and Sakura on the opposite side. A pair of bento boxes sat in front of them. He mentally shook his head in disappointment, disbelieving that the three children could me so incompetent. He heard three stomachs collectively signaled their dissatisfaction.

"Your stomachs are growling, eh?" Kakashi crossed his arms. "By the way, about the results of this test…" They looked at him. "None of you need to return to the Ninja Academy."

"Does this mean we three…?" Sakura asked hopefully, not bothering to finish her sentence.

"Yeah, you three…" he smiled, drawling out his sentence. "…should quit being ninjas!" Kakashi shouted with a cold visage, breaking all of their hopes.

"Quit being ninjas? What do you mean?" Naruto protested loudly. "So we couldn't get those bells on time, but why do you have to say we should quit?"

"It's because you three are just kids who don't even deserve to be ninjas."

Sasuke gritted his teeth. He dashed at the jounin with a look that could kill. But just as he got within striking distance, Kakashi disappeared from his vision and a hand grabbed him by his wrist in a vice-grip. He suddenly found himself slammed into the ground face first. He cried out as a foot crushed the back of his head, disabling movement, and his left arm was pulled behind him in a hammer-lock.

"See? You all are just kids." Kakashi stated.

"Don't step on Sasuke-kun!" Sakura yelled angrily.

Kakashi's eyes focused on her. Sakura immediately shrunk back in fear. He then spoke to all three of them. "Do you guys think being a ninja is easy?" No answer. "I see. By your silence, you're too afraid to answer. Or you three don't know your flaws that could very well cost you your life."

Kakashi turned his attention solely on the pinkette. "Sakura! You care more about Sasuke than Naruto, even though she was right in front of your line of vision and you didn't know where Sasuke was." Sakura bowed her head in embarrassment, the truth of his words ringing in her ears.

Kakashi shoved Sasuke's face harder against the ground. "Sasuke. All you did was work on your own. Your pride and egotistic attitude stopped you from asking for help from your other teammates from the beginning. You even gave away your hiding spot to save Naruto from a simple kawarimi, a technique you should have saw through. I'd expect your clan would had taught you how to counteract that low-rank jutsu from afar, at the very least."

His eyes moved to the tied-up blonde. "Naruto! All you did was showed off your ninjutsu and acted cocky when you thought you had beaten me. Though unlike these two, you actually had come close in gaining both bells, and I commend you for that." Naruto's eyes lit up, but the cold look Kakashi was giving took it right away. "But you did not capitalize on your advantage! You were too motivated in trying to defeat me that you allowed your competitive side to take over, while your main objective was dangling from my waist just inches from your hands. Plus, that last move could have given away secrets of our village if an enemy ninja had to capture or killed you." Naruto shut her eyes, preventing tears of shame from coming out. "_Damn it, he's right…"_

Kakashi allowed what he said to sink in. "If today's exercise was a real battle, all three of you would be dead." He stated firmly, then his voice softened. "...and I would be getting a letter from the Hokage telling me my team had died in action."

Kakashi stood, releasing Sasuke, and moved towards the onyx monument. "Look at this… the numerous names carved into this stone. All these names are those praised as heroes in this village. But they were not your normal heroes. They were those who were K.I.A," Kakashi elucidated as Sasuke moved to joined back with the other genin.

Sakura looked at the monument sadly. "Those who were killed in action." she said in a low voice, finishing off Kakashi's explanation. Naruto's face dropped to a sad look. Sasuke narrowed his eyes, looking grim.

"This is a cenotaph." He looked down at the monument with respect, and a look of sadness. "The names of my friends are craved in here as well." Without turning around, Kakashi asked, "Tell me. Do you three know the answer of this test, the answer to this test that would pass or failed you?"

Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke looked straight at him simultaneously and answered, "Teamwork." Sakura elaborated, "We just didn't realize this until it was too late.."

"..You're not as hopeless as I first thought," Kakashi complimented as his hands roamed over the names of his deceased comrades. "Be that as it may, even though you three looked underneath the underneath and found the real meaning to the test, you still all fail. Timing is crucial on a mission. If one of your teammates abandons you, but then they realized their mistake and came back to help you, but it's already too late, then you lose more than a failed mission." Kakashi's fingers lingered on one name in particular, tracing the characters of their name with a sorrowful expression. He sighed out loud, looking up at the sky as if looking beyond the clouds.

"_What would you do, Obito?"_ Kakashi gazed into the sky, as if looking into heaven. He closed his eyes and listened to the wind, as if the words of his fallen best friend were carried within its gentle breeze. After a few moments of silence, he once again opened his eyes and turned his head to the trio.

"I'll give you all one more chance." He saw their faces perked up slightly. "However, the battle for the bell will be much harsher after lunch. Eat lunch only if you are up to the challenge. But don't let Naruto eat. She goes hungry."

The blonde glowered at Kakashi as he walked towards them. "Nani? Why?" Naruto asked, talking for her growling stomach. She tried freeing herself from the bindings, but found the task to be unexpectedly hard to accomplish.

"This is your punishment for your actions today. Out of all three of you, yours would have cost your team their ultimate demise the most …And I'll stop that struggling if I were you. Those ropes are chakra-infused, only responding to my chakra signature. Your attempts are useless." He moved his gaze over Sasuke and Sakura. "If anyone feeds her, the person will immediately fail."

He ignored Sasuke's glare. "My word is law. Got it?" their sensei said in a menacing tone before disappearing.

Once Kakashi was gone, Naruto watched as her two teammates picked up a bento box each. Looking down, she tried to not let anyone see her face and how hungry she was. She tried to ignore the rumbling of her stomach and the pang of hunger from not eating breakfast, but it wasn't working like she had hoped it would. Peeking up, Naruto saw Sasuke eat another bite of food and her stomach gave a rather noisy rumble.

Naruto didn't know what was more uncomfortable. The fact that she was tied to a wooden post, or the fact that she was starving _and_ her teammates were enjoying their packed lunches in front of her. As if wanting to torture her, her stomach released a noisy _and_ hungry sounding growl. The two glanced at her briefly, chopsticks poised and ready to enter their mouths at any moment. Sakura and Sasuke frowned slightly as they lowered their food, quickly shooting a glance back and forth between their lunches and the tied-up ninja. The blonde blushed with mild embarrassment, and looked away._ "If I had just one more day to practice that hiraishin technique, I would have nailed it… Then I wouldn't be starving like a mangy mutt right now…"_

Her thoughts were cut short however, when a pair of chopsticks bearing scented rice was stuffed surprisingly into her mouth. Food! But where had it come fro-… "Sasuke?"

The Uchiha just started to gather another portion of rice on to his chopsticks. "Just swallow it."

A low gasp from her left had her glancing in that direction. "Sasuke-kun! Kakashi-sensei said we're not allowed to feed her!" she whispered furiously, eyes darting around to make sure he wasn't anywhere in the vicinity. She didn't want her beloved to get into trouble now, did she?

"We're supposed to be a team. How can we expect Naruto to do her best on an empty stomach?"

"_Sasuke-kun…"_ Sakura sighed softly, but nodded her agreement, offering her bento box to Naruto.

"_Sakura…?"_ Naruto thought, her eyes widening in disbelief. She didn't expect this small gesture to come from her, or Sasuke in that manner. Seeing that she meant it, Naruto offered a small smile of thanks. "Arigatou…" Sakura returned the grin, her feelings mutual. Unknown to the three of them, this was the first time those two had shown any loyalty to her as a team. And at that exact moment as the two kounichis exchange their gratitude, a feeling intertwined the three in a way they couldn't decipher.

Friendship.

* * *

Kakashi watched from his location behind a tree a good distance away, secretly listening into their conversation. His position was perfectly concealed from the three genin in a method that he could see them, but they couldn't see him unless they looked behind the tree.

It was like looking into a mirror. He didn't see Sasuke offering his boxed lunch to Naruto, but saw himself in the exact same position when he was younger. He also failed along with his three genin teammates during this bell training many years ago. Like Sasuke, he went off on his own to retrieve a bell. Yet, he failed.

Yet, they all failed as a team.

He watched Sakura offering Naruto her bento box. It was time to act.

* * *

Just as Sasuke's chopsticks rose for the second time, their sensei showed up in an explosion of smoke and dust. "YOU THREE!" Naruto bit back her cry of surprise, reaching into her reaching into her weapon pouch, only to remember that she's tied up, in other words, she's a sitting duck. Sakura screamed in fear, defending herself with her arms upon instinct. Sasuke gritted his teeth, bearing his grounds, prepared for any type of attack.

The galestorm encircled the training field, howling an ominous wail. That and Kakashi's murderous glare still remained. His visible eye glowered at them, the aura he was masked over with waves of killer intent. "You three just broke the rule," he snarled. "Are you ready for the punishment?" He went through several handseals. Suddenly, the sky darkened immensely with streaks of lightening and foreboding clouds. The earth shook violently, though Kakashi still maintain his perfect balance. "Any last words?"

Sasuke scowled at the silver haired man, his hands itching towards his kunai if the scarecrow dared to make the first move. He wasn't going to give up without a fight. The pink haired kounichi cowered in fright, too shaken up to do anything. Naruto glanced from her two teammates, one too tense while the other too frightened. She couldn't do anything while contained like this, so maybe…

"But…!" Naruto shouted, getting the attention of the other three. "Hm?" Kakashi said, the earthquake diminishing in the process. The blonde's voice slowly gained confidence. "You said that we all have to work as a team if we wanted to pass. That's why…"

"We're a three man team, right?" Sasuke said, completing Naruto's sentence.

"Yeah! We three are one!" Sakura's voice was higher than usual, but her teammates' words gave her enough assurance to stand up against the jounin. Kakashi shot the girl a look out the corner of his eye, though she didn't flinched away this time.

"You three are one, eh?" Kakashi walked up to them, the tone of his voice becoming more threatening. It was as if Shinigami itself had come to take their souls to their tormenting graves inside the pit of its stomach. In a quick motion, he dug into his weapon pouch for a shrunken, pumped some of his chakra into the metal, and whipped it directly at Naruto. She shut her eyes as the weapon neared, but instead of feeling pain, she felt her arms loosened. The now-sliced ropes lay limped around her feet as she looked up at Kakashi for an explanation.

"You pass!" he replied cheerfully.

"Huh?" Sakura lowered her guard. All three of them looking confused.

"You pass." Kakashi repeated more slowly, letting the two words sink into their heads.

"Pass? Doushite?" the pinkette finally uttered, still wearied that this abrupt change in mood is just another trick. The sky begins to clear up, letting the rays shined through like rebel stars.

"You three are the first. People I had previously were blockheads who just listened to what I said." He continued. "_'_Ninja need to think beyond the normal_._' In the world of the ninja, those who break the rules are trash. But those who don't care for their friends are worse than trash." Kakashi looked up into the sky. _"Isn't that right, Obito?"_

He turned to face his newly found team, a voice of authority present in the air. "The training ends here. Everyone passes! Team 7 will start missions starting tomorrow!" he concluded, giving them a thumbs-up in congratulations.

"Yes, sir!" cheered Sakura.

Sasuke nodded, smirking at the silver haired jounin in contentment.

"_Kakashi-oji…"_ Naruto looked up to him with a happy-sad type of look. "_I think.. I'll like having you as my teacher, Sensei."_

* * *

The sun was beginning to set as Hinata decided to wander around the forest after her accomplishment in her genin test. Well… her teammates Shino and Kiba did most of the work. She just came in when needed… Hinata didn't want to go back to the Hyuuga compound yet, she just wanted to get away from her father for a bit. During this time, her father, Hiashi, would be training Hanabi, because she was a better fighter than Hinata. She would never say that out loud, but she knew it was true. Hinata was considered weak. Her father thought she was weak, Hinata even thought herself weak. She could not defeat her sister, even though she was five years her senior.

She was now in her favorite part of the many training grounds, where there were many trees surrounding her. She headed to her favorite sitting spot, under a tall oak tree. Hinata came in sight of her favorite tree. She frowned a little, there was someone there. Someone in orange… she gasped. There was only one person that size who wore orange.

Hinata whispered, "Naruto-chan…"

Naruto ran vertically up the tree but soon felt her control faltering after six feet. Gripping the kunai in her hand, she marked the spot where she exceeded the highest, and back-flipped gracefully on to the ground. Beads of sweat trickled down her cheek. She wiped them off with the back of her hand, muttering incoherent things under her breath. Hinata thought, "_Naruto-chan, you are truly amazing…"_

"_Only gone up six feet..."_ The girl thought staring at the height she managed to mark. "Damn it!" She cursed in frustration. "Stupid things weighing me down," she grumbled, lifting her sore arm that was latched on to the weights. Naruto sighed and formed the necessary hand seal, gathering the required chakra on her feet to try once more.

"Hmm?" She stopped her advancement, sensing a familiar chakra presence nearby. "Why are you hiding behind a tree, Hinata-chan?"

The girl yelped aloud in surprise at being caught. "A...ano..."

"Eh? What's wrong, Hinata-chan?" Naruto asked turning around and walking towards the shy girl.

"I...I was j-just wandering i-if I can also do something like that..." Hinata asked looking down on the ground fidgeting her fingers.

"That?" Naruto asked looking back at the marked tree. It easily came to her that Hinata was referring to the tree climbing exercise. "Of course you can!" She exclaimed turning back to the shy girl.

"B-but it looks difficult. I... I don't think I can..."

"Of _course_ you can! Now come on!" She reached down, grabbing one of Hinata's arms. Naruto then proceeded to pulling her up on her feet. "You just need to have confidence in yourself! I'm sure you can do it!" She continued encouraging her.

Hinata was surprised at the faith Naruto was putting in her. Never in her life had she met someone who believed in her as she was used to being looked down at home, especially by her father for her lack of ability. With doubt looming over, the white-eyed girl looked sadly down on the ground.

Naruto felt her impatience mounted over the girl's lack of self-confidence. "Hinata-chan, listen. Just gather chakra on your feet then run up the tree. It's actually not that hard once you start to get the hang of it." Naruto instructed.

Hinata nodded and reluctantly did what she was told to do. Joining her hands forming a hand seal to mold chakra unto her feet, she began to race across the ground and didn't take long before she reached the same tree Naruto was trying to climb. The first step came as a success with her foot sticking firmly against the wood. _"I can do this. Naruto-chan is watching me. I cannot fail."_ Her thoughts screamed as she made it step by step up the tree. Suddenly her foot slipped causing her to lose balance and pummeled straight down.

She was anticipating a hard impact with the ground below but instead felt a feathery breeze cushioned her fall. When she turned around she saw Naruto dropping a handseal, giving her a "you're welcome" smile. "A-Arigatou..." She muttered weakly, embarrassed that she couldn't have landed effortlessly like her friend did.

"Hinata-chan..." Naruto muttered while inspecting the tree that she climbed.

"_She's probably thinking what a failure I am."_ Hinata thought sadly lowering her head in shame. _"I shouldn't have tried climbing up that tree. I just made myself look stupid in front of her."_ She suddenly felt a pair of hands grasp her shoulders and when she looked up she saw Naruto staring at her, her face beaming with admiration. "That was incredible, Hinata-chan! You made up to at least fourteen feet on your first try!"

Surprised, Hinata glanced up the tree. All that she could see were the marks Naruto had scratched off from the bark. There was absolutely no way for her to confirm if the achievement the girl was giving her credit for was true or not. For all she knew, she may not have even reached halfway through the marks. When she turned her head down once more, the same look didn't seem to leave Naruto's face. "A-Arigatou..." She said nodding meekly, a light shade of pink staining her cheeks.

"Come on, Hinata-chan! Let's celebrate our official graduation day as genin!" Naruto boosted, grabbing Hinata's wrist and towing her to the excited blonde's desired location.

"Wah..! N-Naruto-chan!"

* * *

Naruto and Hinata were walking along the dirt track leading out of the woods that evening. Thought exhausted, the girl was in a fairly good mood because of the huge progress she made in today's training. Hinata was also feeling better. Training with Naruto even for just a short time showed her that she can accomplish a lot of things if she just had faith in her abilities. The village lights came closer as Naruto continued to practically dragged Hinata onward. The Hyuuga heiress, her curiosity finally taking over her, asked, "U-Um, Naruto-chan? Where a-are we going a-actually?"

Naruto halted her advancement, staring ahead with a wide grin. She turned towards Hinata. "We're here!" The timid looked at the sign hanging in flaps over the entrance halfway. "I..chi..ra..ku…—..!" Her energetic friend continued tolling her to the entrance, finishing off her surveillance from her perspective. "The best ramen in the world!"

They lifted a flap out of their way, entering the warm ramen bar. Naruto breathed in deeply, closing her eyes to better savor the smells, surprised that the place could smell so good when nothing was even cooking. "Ah, one of my favorite customers is back! Is it the usual today?" a deep robust voice said.

Hinata and Naruto adverted their attention to the one who spoke, a middle-aged cook named Teuchi. Behind him was his daughter Ayame, starting to prepare to ramen. "Make it two. One for me and the other for Hinata-chan."

"_The heir to the Hyuuga clan."_ Teuchi noted mentally. Being an important member of one of Konoha's most prestigious clans, the girl was quite well-known within the village, just like Naruto for being the only daughter for the Yondaime. Teuchi studied her features for a while before turning his eyes back to his second number one customer. "Is she a friend of yours?"

"Hai. We were classmates at the Academy," Naruto explained as she and Hinata sat down on the first two available stools they saw. After a few minutes of waiting for their orders to come back, they finally smelled the delectable aroma of miso wafting their way. Hinata hadn't realized how hungry she was until just now.

"Here are your orders, Hinata-san, Naruto-san!" the owner said breaking the silence; he sat down the bowl of miso ramen in front of the two girls. Naruto, upon hearing the suffix '–san' placed after her name, frowned at the owner. Teuchi noticed the unenthusiastic look, which worried him since she's always excited when there's ever ramen in front of her. "Eh, what's wrong Naruto-san? Is the broth—"

The blonde slammed her hands onto the counter top while standing up, rattling the ramen bowls considerably. "That's my problem! Stop adding the '–san' at the end of my name!" She settled down into her seat with a aggravated huff. "Geez, it gets really annoying…"

"R-Right. Gomenasai, Naruto-sa— ..Naruto," Teuchi corrected, stopping himself for saying respectable ending at the end of her name. Naruto grinned boldly now that she had won the argument. "And that's goes the same for you, Ayame-neechan." Ayame jumped a bit from suddenly being pulled into the heated quarrel. "H-Hai."

Hinata observed the exchange, remembering the time when she had added the '–san' when she'd first met Naruto. She got the similar order.

Clapping her hands together, Naruto closed her eyes. "Itadakemasu!" Hinata carry out the same traditional prayer, only less enthusiastic. Hinata couldn't help but smile inwardly at the light-hearted display. She too began to eat her ramen slowly and in silence, a clear testament to her noble upbringing, and quite contrary to Naruto's tomboyish and rapid manner of eating, for she had no care of what people think of her manner of consumption.

"So, Hinata-chan," Naruto asked after she gotten through her fifth bowl and counting. "How did you do on your genin test?"

Hinata paused her intake, her eyes clouding over in disappointment. "…My t-team passed, b-but if it wasn't f-for Shino-kun or K-Kiba-kun.. I would have f-failed. I h-hardly did anything to help t-them. They j-just helped m-me when I get in their w-way.." Her voice became slowly became inaudible until it was just a whisper, more to herself than to her friend. "I'm just too weak…"

Naruto protested, "You aren't weak Hinata-chan!"

Naruto didn't even give Hinata time to protest against her statement. "You have the potential to become a great ninja! And your chakra control is way better than mine, so you can manipulate your chakra a lot better than I can by a long shot!"

Hinata was lost for words. That avowal was something Hinata hears as truly genuine, her ears can tell that much. "N-Naruto-chan… arigatou gozaimasu." Naruto believed in her from deep within her heart, so she thought that the least she could do to repay her kindness was for her to believe in herself. _"Arigatou Naruto-chan. From now on, I'll try harder."_

Naruto laughed a bit at her unneeded gratitude. "Why thank me? I'm only telling the truth." Although Naruto didn't know it, she had lit a fire of determination in Hinata's heart that she had not seen for many years.


	7. Journey to the Wave Country

**Author's Notes:** Some SasuFemNaru scenes are coming up in the Wave Country. Actually, it's the starting place where Naruto starts to remember her promise… ;)

**Summary: **She looks up to gaze at his coal obsidian eyes as he gazes downward at her enchanting sky blue eyes. They both thought, _"Is this love?"_ Who says opposites can't attract? SasuFemNaru… MORE PAIRINGS INSIDE

**Pairings: **SasuFemNaru, ItaFemKyuu, LeeSaku, NejiTen, ShikaTema, KibaHina, ChouIno

**Warnings:** OOC-ness, language

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto

* * *

**Kesshite Wasuremasu  
**_by Aesura_

_**Journey to the Wave Country**_

* * *

"This is Sasuke, arrived at point B."

"This is Sakura, arrived at point C."

"This is Naruto, arrived at point A."

"Okay. Get ready." Kakashi said into the communicator. Up on a high branch, the jounin was well hidden behind the thick blanket of leaves, watching the enemy from the safety of his vantage point. He could clearly see the target moving his head from side to side making sure that no one was around before he continued to run deeper into the forest. "The target has moved. After him!"

Team 7 proceeded to follow the escapee stealthily, keeping in mind to put adequate distance between them and the target as to avoid detection. Soon enough, the target halted his advance to take a much needed break. A safe distance away, Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke hid themselves behind the trunk of three large trees. "Okay, he's here." The blonde reported into the communicator. Her team stayed still, keeping a sharp eye on the target while waiting for further instructions.

"What's the distance to the target?" their sensei's voice asked over the headset.

"Twelve meters." Naruto replied. "I'm ready to go."

"I am too." Sasuke responded back, waiting for orders on what to do next.

"Me too." Sakura's voice was heard right after.

"Okay." Kakashi eyed the target for a few moments. He watched the enemy look around for any signs of prowlers, then lowered his guard. The time was now. "Go!"

Upon command, Naruto slipped out of her hiding place first and went to engage the target. She was moving so fast that the enemy didn't find enough time to react before Naruto caught up with him. "Got'cha!" Naruto said as she looked down at the cat in her arms.

"Does it have a ribbon on its right ear? Is it our target, Tora?" Sasuke heard Kakashi speak to all of them once again.

"It's the target for sure." Sasuke confirmed into the headset.

Kakashi, a few yards from his team, concluded the mission report. "Okay. Operation '_Capture Tora the Lost Pet'_ is complete." He was about to click off his communicator, until…

"ISN'T THERE A MORE EXCITING MISSION WE CAN WORK ON?" Naruto shouted angrily through the earpiece, her patience finally reaching its breaking point after weeks of doing these tedious missions.

Kakashi briefly wondered when the ringing in his left ear will stop.

* * *

Team Seven reported to the Administration Building after their mission was completed. Wasting no time, Kakashi led his students straight to the reception room for clients which also happened to be same place where missions are assigned to the various ninja teams of the village. The room was spacious and was almost pretty much empty except for the long tables situated on the far end of the room behind which the Hokage and his administrative-nins sat. Another thing that decorated the place was the large banner hanging on the ceiling with the words "Everyone, do your best!" across. That's when Lady Shijimi, the Feudal Lord's wife, had rushed into the room unannounced. Looking around the room, the woman squealed with delight once she saw Naruto holding her cat and the next thing Team 7 knew was that the Lady held the cat in her arms, squeezing the feline to death.

"Ohh, my cute Tora-chan. I was so worried about you!" Lady Shijimi cooed whilst smothering the poor little cat. Team 7 just watched as the cat owner was torturing it after being just 'saved' by them. The cat had to be really scared or really smart to run away from such a rotund member of the female species. Naruto wouldn't blame the cat either. _"I actually feel sorry for the furball..."_

Sakura stared at the scene. "_No wonder he ran away..."_

The Yondaime picked up a piece of paper that had a list of missions available and read it. "Now then, Kakashi's Team 7's next mission is..." Their attention turned towards the active Hokage. "... Babysitting Yojyu-sama's boy, grocery shopping at the neighboring town, and digging up potatoes at—"

"NO!" Naruto screamed aloud stomping her foot on the wooden floor to show her objection. "No thank you to all of those! Give us a higher ranked mission! Choose something else!"

"_There's some truth to that_," thought Sasuke.

Sakura looked interested from the declared statement. _"Naruto does have a point.. These missions are getting annoying…"_

Kakashi inwardly sighed at his sensei's daughter's bold proclamation. _"I knew she was going to do this soon. She never did had respect to her elders when it came to the things she want, now did she?"_ He shifted his eyes down and bonked his rebellious student on the head. "Naruto. Behave yourself in front of Hokage-sama."

Minato rubbed his temples at his daughter's attitude, feeling a migraine coming on. He had to fight back a yawn threatening to escape his mouth. The sleep deprived Yondaime looked as if he was about to fall over from exhaustion, but somehow managed to stay up right. No one could blame the man seeing that he had just spent last night and a good portion of the morning making sure that everything was set and in order for the upcoming Chunnin Exams that as of yet, only chunnin and higher shinobi knew about. What he was doing there instead of going straight to bed, was beyond him, but next time, he'll need to remind himself to ask that old man to fill in for him.

"Hmm… It seems like I have to explain to you what missions are again," the Yondaime began. The older blonde seemed to have success in catching Naruto's elusive attention. "Listen, a lot of clients comes to this village everyday. They request things from babysitting to assassination. Each request is written down on these lists and is divided into ranks A, B, C and D according to the level of difficulty." The hokage explained, referring to the various scrolls spread out before him. "The shinobis of the village is also divided according to skill. Missions are then assigned to shinobis with the appropriate abilities. And if we successfully complete the mission we receive payment from the client."

He continued. "You three are still rookie genin, so D-ranked missions are perfect for you." The Yondaime finished, only finding out that the said team had been totally inattentive the whole time and was talking aloud about something irrelevant to his explanation at hand. "Hey! Listen!" the young Kage shouted angrily.

Naruto turned her attention towards her father with a bored look on her face. "Geez! That's what, the fifth time I've heard you talked about that boring mission speech! You always lecture me about stuff like this and stuff like that!" Naruto retorted, shifting her attention back to her father. "But you know, I'm not the same little kid who used to cry anymore! Hmph!" Naruto pouted, crossing her arms and turning away from the man.

Minato's expression softened after hearing those words. _"She's really growing up, huh…?"_ Chuckling inwardly, the Hokage conceded grabbing the C-ranked mission list from the table. "I understand." Sasuke and Sakura looked at the Yondaime. "If you insist, I'll give you a C-ranked mission. It's to escort a certain person," Arashi announced and saw the happy looks on all of Team 7's faces, even Sasuke was slightly smiling.

"When will we meet our client?" Sasuke asked in a dignified matter, all earlier traces of his smile gone.

"You can meet him now," the Yondaime spoke, motioning with his hands towards another door. "Please send him in."

The group turned towards the door and saw it slid open to let a middle age, border-lining old, man into the room. Gray hair with a matching gray facial hair and beady eyes made the man look older than he actually was. He had what looked to be a rope tied around his forehead and small-wired rim glass had slid down his nose. His clothes were different from what they had around Konoha, but the half-drunk sake bottle was one from the stores somewhere in Konoha.

"What? They're all kids!" exclaimed the old man, taking a long swig of the liquor he was drinking before resting up against the doorway. "Are these snot nose brats really the ones who are supposed to escort me back home?" The three genin shot him death glares, but the drunken man waved off the fierce looks as if they were nothing.

"I'm the expert bridge builder Tazuna," the old man introduced himself. "Once I have returned to my country, I will have all of you protect my life with your while I complete the bridge."

Kakashi nodded to Tazuna before turning to his team. "Go home, pack a bare minimum of essentials, your tools and weapons, along with your basic survival equipment. You all have half-an-hour. We'll meet at the Western Gate of Konoha at twelve o' clock sharp."

The three of them nodded, the raven and pink haired girl taking off first with Kakashi and Tazuna lingering at their tails. Naruto was tagging behind, about to exit out before a voice stopped her dead in her tracks.

"Good luck, Naruto."

The blonde froze. ..Her father never called her without that familiar suffix at the end of her name before… A small forced smile tugged on her lips, wavering a bit. Strange. She didn't know whether to feel happy that her father was treating her like a full-fledged ninja, or sad that the memorable '–chan' didn't escaped her otou-san's lips when he said her name.

"…Hai."

* * *

Thirty minutes later, Team Seven and their client were exiting the Konoha's Western Gate. The team looked prepared for the long travel to the Wave Country. They all wore backpacks, including Kakashi. Naruto seemed to be extra excited about this trip.

"Alright! Let's go!" Naruto exclaimed aloud, raising one arm vigorously into the air, as the group of five took their first steps out of Konoha's massive gates.

"What are you all so excited for?" asked Sakura.

"Because it's feels so good to be outside the village again!" Naruto explained wholeheartedly. As a gentle breeze passes by, her features softened, her smile diminishing down in size, but now holding a source of remembrance she longed for. "It's like.. coming back home. ..I'd forgotten how much I missed being out here like this…"

Naruto examined her surroundings. It felt like it had been awhile since she had been outside of Konoha, traveling around from country to country with Ero-sennin. She missed being out the road with that pervert she considered as a grandfather. She liked meeting the new people and making friends with them. Seeing the countries and learning about their culture was also fun for her too. The whole experience was something that she enjoyed and missed dearly.

The four looked at her, not expecting that kind of answer coming from the hyperactive blonde. Sasuke, in particular, stared the longest, chiefly at her smile. The soft, yet happy smile. Just like the smile when he gave her…—

Breaking the distilled silence, the bridge builder cleared his throat and asked the jounin, "Hey. Are you sure that kid can protect me? She's still pretty young." He pointed at Naruto.

"I, a Jounin, will be accompanying you. There's no need to worry." Kakashi replied lightheartedly. His words, however, didn't come as much of an assurance for the skeptical man.

"Grrr…" Naruto crossed his arms, her eyes twitching in anger, their client's words still ringing in her head. _"This geezer is the worst client ever."_ She raised her arm and pointed furiously back at the insolent man. "Hey old man! Don't go underestimating me!"

Tazuna took a swig of his bottle, looking at her over his spectacles. "And tell me, pip-squeak. Why should I even care of what I think of you?" the man shot back, not liking how the kid was disrespecting him openly and in front of others as well.

"Because I'm going to be the Hokage of my village someday, and you better show some respect to me, or I'll be going over to the Wave Country personally to kick your ass!"

Tazuna didn't appear to be moved at all. "Hokage is the village's number one ninja, right?" He cast an incredulous look at Naruto, staring at her from head to foot. "I don't think a brat like you will ever become one."

"SHUT UP! You'll be begging at my feet for me to forgive you once I become Hokage!"

"No I won't, brat. That is, even if you become Hokage."

Naruto gritted her teeth as she felt her temper reach new heights. "I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" The raging blonde rushed forward ready to go out on a rampage. Kakashi quickly grabbed onto Naruto's collar as soon as she took her first step forward, thus stopping a full scale riot from erupting. "Let go, Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto screamed, futilely fighting against her teacher's hold.

"No. Cut it out, Naruto."

"Can't I just maim him?"

"No!"

"Just let me at least hit him once really hard!" she tried.

The silver haired jounin rubbed his forehead with his free hand. "I said no, and that is final, Naruto." He looked at Tazuna. "She may be young, Tazuna-san, but Naruto is a gifted shinobi in the village with talented abilities. I'm sure she's willing to give up her life to protect you."

Naruto stopped her attempts after Tazuna began to stroll away indifferently with an 'hmph'. She crossed her arms, cooling herself down so that she doesn't "accidentally" kill their client. _"Stupid drunken old man… He got off lucky this time…"_

Unknown to any of them, two shadows have been lurking about. Hiding within the thick foliage of the forest along the roadside, the hunters watched the group intently, patiently waiting for the right moment to strike just like the predators that are going after their prey.

* * *

The first half an hour of the trip was a silent one. Naruto took point, leading the group with Tazuna, Sasuke and Sakura on either side of him for protection, following behind her. Bringing up the rear was Kakashi, reading his newest Icha Icha Paradise. All this done to make sure Tazuna had maximum security from bandits and other low-level thugs that would try to kill the bridge builder.

However, after the first half an hour of silence, Sakura decided it was too quiet and wanted to make conversation. At first, she tried talking to Sasuke, but all her efforts failed, horrible. Naruto seemed more excited about the scenery than anything else. Therefore, she tried making conversation with their client. That was only because she knew she couldn't talk to Kakashi, since he was currently reading his new book.

"Hey, Tazuna-san…"

"What is it?"

Sakura looked curious. "You're from the Wave Country, right?" she asked.

"What about it?" he retorted.

Sakura looked at the jounin. "Kakashi-sensei, are there also ninja in that country?"

Kakahsi met her gaze impassively, putting his book away. "No, there are no ninja in the Wave Country. But while the culture and customs of other countries may be different, hidden villages and ninjas do exist. To many countries that do exist in this land, the existence of ninja villages is the equivalent of the country's military powers. In other words, that is how they are able to maintain the relationship with neighboring countries. But the villages aren't under control of that country. They are supposedly equal in position. On a small island like the Wave Country, where it is difficult to be influenced by other countries, there is no need for a ninja village. Among the countries that have a ninja village, since the five countries of Hi, Mizu, Kaminari, Kaze, and Tsuchi occupy a large mass of land and their powers are immense, they are known as the Five Great Ninja Powers: Hi no Kuni's Konohagakure no Sato, Mizu no Kuni's Kirigakure no Sato, Kaminari no Kuni's Kumogakure no Sato, Kaze no Kuni's Sunagakure no Sato, and Tsuchi no Kuni's Iwagakure no Sato. Only the leader of each hidden village is allowed to carry the name of 'Kage'. Hokage, Mizukage, Raikage, Kazekage, and Tsuchikage, otherwise known as the 'Five Kages', are the ninjas that reign over the tens of thousands of ninjas that exist in the countries throughout the world."

"_Sugoi...__, I knew that otou-san was always a great man!"_ Naruto thought gleefully to herself, smiling fulsomely at the recognition her father is getting.

"So we won't come in contact with any foreign shinobi?" the slightly scared pink haired girl asked.

He patted the girl's head. "Don't worry. We won't have any ninja battles in a C-ranked mission," the Kakashi reassured the girl. Sakura look relieved.

The grimace coming from their client did not go unnoticed by the man. Seeing this, Kakashi took it upon himself to keep a closer eye on their client and their surroundings, seeing how something was definitely wrong with the man. _"You're hiding something…"_

Aside from the previous explanation, the long walk had been all in all uneventful. The scenery also didn't come as any help at all, just a simple dirt road cutting across the dull view of green from the trees and shrubs of the growing along the roadside. In fact, the only thing that broke the monotony of the surroundings was a small puddle on the barren ground. Naruto's eyes narrowed in suspicion. _"What the hell? It hasn't rained in weeks…"_ This caused her to be instantly in on guard.

After the group had passed seemingly harmless puddle, a shinobi draped in a black cloak with a gas mask-like device covering the lower areas of his face emerged from the shallow pool of water. A second shinobi leapt quickly from behind the first one, launching himself into the air and after performing some split second maneuver wrapped the thick metal chain linking their heavy gauntlets around the unsuspecting Kakashi.

"What?" Kakashi exclaimed in surprise.

"Huh?" Sakura whirled around and saw Kakashi bound by some sort of chain.

"What the–?" sounded Naruto.

"One down." Both shinobis declared, activating the driving mechanisms in their arms. The chain tightened its grip over Kakashi until it became too much and his body ripped into pieces. What followed was the sickening sound of flesh and blood falling unto the ground.

"KYYAA!" Sakura screamed in horror after witnessing the gruesome sight.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto called out. But then her eyes suddenly narrowed, her initial worry for her sensei disappearing. _"Kakashi-sensei wouldn't let himself be killed by these rouge ninjas that easily. They look to be at high chuunin level, at most. He's up to something…"_

Unfortunately, her scream caught the attention of the two shinobis. Bad move. The assassins quickly glanced at the one who spoke, their eyes immediately landing on Naruto. Their eyes glinted in recognition as they grinned like madmen underneath their gas masks. _"Tazuna __**is**__ their prime target, but compare to having the head of the Yondaime's daughter, the old man's death meant second to none,"_ they both thought.

The blonde saw their looks when they eyed her, her blood turning cold for a split second. They knew who she was. But a split second was all that they needed. They appeared behind Naruto, the unlucky one who caught their attention and whom they've picked for their next target. Naruto still stood rooted in place when she felt their presence hovering dangerously over her back. She could almost feel the grins that curled over the two shinobis' faces. "Naruto! What are you doing just standing there? Get out of there NOW!" Sakura shouted, not wanting to see another one of her teammates die. Too late.

"Two down."

They drove their claws into her back till it came out through the other side. Then slowly, agonizingly, the assassins drew their claws across her stomach in either direction from the inside-out. Naruto's eyes dilated from their sockets as the contents of her stomach spilled onto the ground beneath her. Everyone's eyes were widened in shock as Sakura screamed in terror. But before the body fell to the ground, it poofed into smoke.

"_Nani?"_ Both assassins' eyes widened in disbelief.

That was when Sasuke made his move. Leaping into the air, he pulled out a single shuriken and kunai and timed his attack. When he found his opportunity, the shuriken flew though the air and snagged the bladed chain, forcing it into place against a tree. Then the kunai followed, nailing down the chain once it pierced through the center of the shuriken. His jump took him to the two ninja and he landed with his feet on each of their extended arms connected to the chain. He then planted his hands on their arms and delivered a pair of mule kicks to their faces, rocking their heads back from the force.

In perfect sequence, Naruto came out of hiding, wiping out several shurikens tied with specialized durable wires. She throws it at the two shinobis, it swerving around their arm armor. Pumping chakra into the strings, she tightened her hold and pulled on them, slicing the iron metal through like water. Now the strings wounded their hold around the Demon Brothers' arms, slicing into their flesh in a rapid pace. Seeing that they had to act quickly before their arms become severed, one went after Tazuna while the other one went after Naruto.

"_Shit!"_ Sasuke cursed mentally when they separated and suddenly dashed to attack the others. He saw a very faint movement of silver towards Naruto and made his move. When Sakura positioned herself in front of their client for protection, he moved in front of her to ward off the attacking shinobi. He narrowed his eyes at the enemy.

"GAH!" the enemy shinobi cried out as an arm encircled around his neck, the force of the impact at the speed he was going knocked out all the air in his lungs.

"_Kakashi-sensei! He's alive!" _Sakura thought in relief.

"_Hn. Show-off."_ Sasuke grumbled mentally.

"You're late, Kakashi-sensei." Naruto grumbled, frowning at said jounin. Naruto turned her head towards the site her sensei was supposedly killed. What she saw there were clopped pieces of logs scattered along the road._ "Kakashi-sensei used Kawarimi… just like before," _she thought, referring back to the time he had used that technique on her during their survival test.

Pretending that he didn't heard the blonde's comment, Kakashi turned to his team. "Sasuke. Sakura. Good job." His eyes turned to Naruto. "You too, Naruto."

Within a few seconds, they were tied up and were not going anywhere. He turned to his team, then to his attention to their client. "Tazuna-san."

"What is it?"

"I need to talk to you."

* * *

"These look like Hidden Mist Chuunins," observed Kakashi, staring impassively at the tied-up shinobi. "These shinobis are known to continue fighting no matter what."

"…How did you read out movements?" one of them asked.

"On a sunny day like this when it hasn't rain in days, there's not going to be a puddle." He stated obviously, glaring down at the two shinobi.

Tazuna was confused. "If you knew that, they why did you let the kids fight?"

"If I was up to it, I could have killed these two in a blink of an eye. But…" Kakashi narrowed his eyes at their client. "I needed to know who the target of these two was."

"What do you mean?" Tazuna asked. He couldn't hide his worry.

"In other words, were you being targeted, or somebody from our ninja group? Your request was to protect you from armed groups like gangs and robbers. This is a mission that's above a B-rank. Our job was to support and guard you until you completed the bridge. If ninja are our enemy, this mission would have been an expensive A-rank. It looks like you have your reasons, but it only troubles us if you lie in your request details. This wasn't part of the mission."

"This mission is out of our league. Let's quit!" Three pairs of eyes locked onto Sakura. "Besides, there's no telling what will happen to us if—"

"NO WAY!" Naruto shouted in anger. "We promised the old man that we'll protect him no matter what. What I say, is what I do, this is who I am. I'm not going back on it; that is my nindo, my ninja way. We're continuing the mission!"

A barely noticeable smile formed on the man's face. _"I guess I misjudged her. She's a pretty good kid after all, even though she's still a runt."_ Tazuna thought, apparently impressed by Naruto's spirit.

Kakashi saw Sasuke standing next to Naruto, a similar determined look.

"I guess that decides everything." He turned his eyes to the pink haired kuonichi. "Sakura, I understand that you are shocked at experiencing your first battle, but you must understand that quitting does not solve everything. Right now we are in the middle of a mission, even though the situations have changed, our duty is still to protect our client. This happens sometimes."

Sakura paused for a short moment, realizing what she just said. Kakashi then walked over to the girl and patted the top of her hair a bit, his way of giving her reassurance before walking off. Her hands instinctly flew to the spot where her sensei's hand was at, about to smooth out the ruffled parts of her hair, but instead she touched her hiate-ate, feeling the engraved emblem of the Leaf in the middle. She laughed at herself. "_I'm an idiot. Because of one battle, I wanted to quit and run, forgetting my duty to my team."_ She looked back up at Kakashi and nodded.

"Hai, Kakashi-sensei."

* * *

An ominous lair stood in utter silence, hidden from outside world by the tall trees and dense vegetation of the forest that was its protector. Nocturnal animals crackled and whispered in the darkness, their chattering soon completely silence by a booming voice.

"YOU FAILED?"

The whole place was covered in darkness except for some spots being showered with the little light coming in from the windows along the walls. One such spot is where the ringleader of the organization stood, accompanied by a bodyguard. He pointed his finger accusingly at the one sitting on the couch. "I paid you guys a lot of money because I heard you were very strong former ninjas."

"Stop whining." A voice hidden within the darkness spoke. He gripped the hilt of his heavy blade, swinging it at the short man. His eyes flashed with terror as the razor sharp tip came but a centimeter from his throat. He shivered.

"This time, I'll go personally; and this sword will be the last thing he'll ever see."

"Are you sure?" the bodyguard challenged. "It seems the enemy has hired some skilled ninjas; and with the failure of the Demon Brothers, they'll be prepared."

"Who do you think I am…?" The owner of the second voice, a tall muscular man, scoffed. White cloth was wrapped around his head forming a face mask that covered the lower part of his face. He still hung onto his huge sword, the famed Kubikiri Honsho. "I am the Demon of the Mist, Momochi Zabuza."


	8. Kakashi versus Zabuza

**Summary: **She looks up to gaze at his coal obsidian eyes as he gazes downward at her enchanting sky blue eyes. They both thought, _"Is this love?"_ Who says opposites can't attract? SasuFemNaru… MORE PAIRINGS INSIDE

**Pairings: **SasuFemNaru, ItaFemKyuu, LeeSaku, NejiTen, ShikaTema, KibaHina, ChouIno

**Warnings:** OOC-ness, language

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto

* * *

**Kesshite Wasuremasu  
**_by Aesura_

_**Kakashi versus Zabuza**_

* * *

"What a thick mist. I can't see ahead," noted Sakura.

The team along with Tazuna and a ferry man were sitting in a boat in the middle of the calm sea. Around them, like Sakura said, was a thick mist that reduced their vision greatly. They could see no more than a few meters in front of them. Naruto sat at the bow of the boat followed by Sasuke, Sakura, and Kakashi, while Tazuna and the ferry man sat at the bow.

"We should see the bridge soon," stated the ferry man. "The Wave Country is at the base of the bridge."

They weren't disappointed. After five minutes, the group was greeted with the sight of a huge creation constructed of concrete, steel, man-power, and human thinking. Naruto did not really pay that much attention to it, having seen many of its kind through her travels with Ero-sennin, though her teammates were captivated by its sight.

Kakashi stared lazily at Tazuna. "Tazuna-san, before the boat gets to pier, I have a few questions to ask you." He paused, waiting for a reaction. None. "I need to know the identity of the men after you, and their reason they're after you." He continued. "Or I can call this mission off once we hit shore."

After a few seconds, Tazuna sighed dauntingly. "It looks like I have to tell you the real story. …No.., I _want_ you to know the truth. As you said, this is most likely out of the scope of the original mission. It turns out that an extremely terrible man is after my life."

Kakashi kept his stare. "Extremely terrible man? Who?"

"You've probably heard his name before…The wealthy shipping magnate Gatou."

The name peaked Kakashi's interest. "Huh? Gatou…from that Gatou Company? He's said to be one of the world's wealthiest men."

Tazuna continued. "Yes… Officially he runs a large shipping company.. But secretly, he sells drugs and other illegal items, using ninjas and gang members to take over businesses and countries." He paused, letting out a breath. "It was about a year ago when he set his eyes on the Wave Country. Thorough money and violence, he quickly took control of my country's shipping industry. Gatou now has a monopoly on all business traffic in the country. The one thing he has to fear now is the completion of the bridge."

Sakura seemed to be thinking. "I see… Since you're building the bridge, you're in the way."

"Then those ninja were sent by Gatou," Sasuke noted.

"And he'll most likely send Jounin rather than Chuunin next time," Naruto concluded.

Kakashi narrowed his eyes at Tazuna. "But what I don't understand is if you knew ninja could be after you, why did you hide that fact when you hired us?"

"The Wave Country is a really poor." Tazuna looked down. "Even the feudal lord has little money. Of course, we do not have much money either.. not enough for an expensive B-rank mission. If you quit your mission after I land, I'll definitely be killed…" He sighed. He looked up at them. "But don't worry about it! If I die, my cute ten year-old grandson will just cry for a few days!"

"…" Naruto and Sakura sweatdropped.

"Oh yeah, and my daughter will live a sad life hating Konoha shinobis forever. But it won't be your fault. Not at all!"

Kakashi looked at his teammates and huffed out a breath of air, smiling sheepishly at the bridge builder. "Well, I guess we have no choice. We will protect you at least until you get beak to your country."

"Oh? Well, I'm very grateful." he said in gratitude, though it sounded a bit acted out, as if he had planned to tell that whole guilt trip speech from the start…

"_I win,"_ Tazuna thought to himself.

* * *

The group made it ashore without much trouble. Once out of the boat, Tazuna and the ferry man exchanged a few words before he took off using the boat's engine.

Kakashi took in the changes since his last visit to the Wave Country. The scenery of has not changed much but he did note the conditions of some of the housing. They looked to have seen better days adding to the story of how poor the country has become. Much has changed in a few years.

"Okay! Get me home safely," instructed Tazuna.

"Yeah, yeah." Kakashi replied, allowing Naruto to once again lead the way. He did not show it much, but he was worried. _"Like Naruto said,_ _if we get attacked again, it will surely be Jounin instead of Chuunin."_ He glanced at the scenery.

The weather was getting warm and the entire countryside covered with a sunny gleam as the summer season finally sets in. The group marched down the forest road in silence. The whole scenery was covered with summer foliage. The green leaves from the trees along the roadside littered all over the branches as birds chirped from their tops. Suddenly Naruto stopped in her tracks, sensing something from her right.

"There!" Naruto exclaimed, throwing a kunai at the low-lying shrubs. Tazuna, Sakura, and Kakashi were greatly surprised by the young ninja's actions. Sasuke, on the other hand, showed no signs of sudden emotion, maintaining his relative calmness while a thick silence filled the air. After a few seconds, Naruto walked over to the bush, pushing back a few of the leaves, revealing a shocked rabbit paralyzed with fear, the kunai barely a centimeter over its head. She was relatively surprised at its condition. "This rabbit looks a bit ..strange…"

"NA-RU-TO!" Sakura screamed, making the blonde jumped by her abrupt loud voice. "Of course it looks strange, baka! You almost _killed_ it with your kunai!"

"That's not what I mean! Look at its fur. I didn't know rabbits in this time of the year turned white. I always thought they did that during the later fall and winter time when there is less sunlight."

Once hearing Naruto's observance, Kakashi narrowed his eyes, scanning the foliage. _"She's right. That's no ordinary rabbit… it was raised indoors, away from the light, which could only be for one purpose: a __kawarimi_._ The owner must have used it when Naruto threw the kunai." _The jounin turned his head, eyes focused on a particular tree. _"So… they're already here…"_

"_I see. So I got noticed."_ The hidden shinobi grabbed the long hilt of the sword hanging on his back when he saw that Kakashi was looking in his direction. _"Heh. This is going to be fun."_

"Everyone, get down!" Kakahsi ordered. They all quickly did as told when they noticed the large blade spinning in the air flying towards them.

The giant sword passed harmlessly overhead and continued flying forward until it embedded itself firmly on one of the larger trees ahead of them, a figure immediately appearing on top of the handle of the huge sword. The group finally got up and looked at the being.

Shoving his hands in his pockets, Kakashi addressed the man. "Well, well, if it isn't the Hidden Mist's missing-nin Momochi Zabuza. One of the famous Seven Swordsman of Kirigakure," he greeted passively.

Momochi Zabuza was a fair-skinned shinobi with a lean, muscular build. He wore his hiate-ate to the side of his forehead so the metal plate rested on his left. He also was topless, only having a leather strap that was used to holster his giant sword. His pants were pin-striped with urban camouflage leggings that melted into his open-toed ninja sandals. He also had similar colored loose arm warmers that started at his elbows and ended at his back-hands. Bandages wrapped around his neck and lower head, hiding his mouth and nose.

"_If he's our opponent, I'll need this." _Kakashi lifted his hand to his hiate-ate, ready to reveal his shielded left eye. _"This could be treacherous."_

"If I'm not mistaken, you're Hatake Kakashi, the famous Copycat Ninja," greeted Zabuza, glaring at the group from the corner of his eyes. "I'm sorry, but I'll need you to hand over the old man."

Without lowering his guard, Kakashi slightly adverted his attention to his students. "You three, stay back and take a defensive position. Assume the Manji formation. Protect Tazuna. Do not interfere. He's different from the other two." The three nodded. They pulled out kunai and immediately took up positions around Tazuna. When he was satisfied they wouldn't be in trouble, he turned his attention to the enemy. "Zabuza, first…" Kakashi lifted up his hiate-ate, revealing a striking red eye, three black totems spiraling in a spiral around the pupil. "..fight me."

Sasuke was shocked. _"Sharingan?"_ He had heard from the elders of a person outside his family having the Sharingan… They always talked in hushed whispers about how it was a disgrace for as someone as the _White Fang's son _to have their prized doujutsu. He never would've thought that said person would be his sensei…

"Ah, I already get to see your famous Sharingan. I'm honored."

"The Sharingan… I heard of that. Isn't that the trademark ability of the Uchiha Clan?" Sakura questioned.

"Hai… Sharingan… The eye creates it, and it is the power the pupil generates." explained Sasuke, keeping his eyes on Zabuza. "The sharingan allows the user to see through genjutsu, taijutsu and ninjutsu and cancel their effects. But that is not the only ability the Sharingan possess."

Zabuza seemed amused. "Correct. But the scary part is that Sharingan can understand how an opponents technique works, and copy it."

Kakashi kept his gaze on Zabuza, ignoring the mist that started to surround them. Zabuza squatted down on his sword handle, eying Kakashi. "Let's end all the talking. I have to kill that old man." Tazuna gasped in fear, even though he was being protected by the three genins around him. The missing-nin stared at Kakashi for a few more moments before standing up. "But, Kakashi, it seems I have to defeat you first."

The Swordsman shinobi moved quickly, pulling his sword from the tree and pushing off in a jump. He landed on top of the surface of a nearby body of water. The water surface started rippling violently around him and started to swirl as droplets formed around him in a miniature torrent. His arms were positioned as if performing a technique, both hands forming a half-ram seal while the right hand was in front of his face and the left arm up pointing up at the sky. The mist started to become thicker until Zabuza suddenly disappeared.

"Nani? He disappeared!" gasped Sakura.

"He'll come after me first." Kakashi said, moving to a position several feet in front of Sasuke. "This guy, Momochi Zabuza, was a member of the Kirigakure ANBU. Besides being one of the Seven Swordsmen, he was known as the Silent Killerbecause of his silent killing techniques. Just as the name applies, it's a killing technique that's executed in a flash and is carried out in absolute silence. So keep alert for anything."

The genin instantly were on guard. Their eyes darted back and forth, from Kakashi-sensei and their client, to looking for Zabuza. The action soon became harder to perform as their vision limited with each passing second.

"The mist is getting thicker," Naruto stated, not liking that her visual range was being reduced.

"The Wave Country is surrounded by the ocean, so a mist often emerges," Tazuna explained.

Sakura watched as Kakashi's form disappeared into the mist. "Sensei!" she shouted in worry. An eerie silence followed soon after. Behind the three genin, Tazuna felt a terrible feeling of tension. Knowing the knowledge that someone dangerous was lurking about, unseen, undetectable, and that he is most probably powerless once the enemy decides to strike.

"_There are eight targets." _

Sakura gasped. "What was that?"

"_Throat, spinal column, lungs, liver, the jugular vein, the subclavian artery, kidneys, heart_," the voice of Zabuza floated about the now to thick to see through fog along with a wave of killer intent. The pure killer intent that was coming from all around them caused Tazuna, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura to freeze up. Naruto bowed her head and her hair was covering her eyes, gulping down the fear she felt. She had sensed killer intent before, but not one so abrupt and intense before. This missing-nin isn't fooling around. "_Which one should I go after? Heh heh."_

Sasuke was frightened beyond belief, not thinking clearly. Yet when he caught sight of the frozen blonde beside him, a deathly image of her lying on the ground dying, body bloody and him not being able to do anything to help the blonde flashed in his mind as if it were a glimpse into the future. The emotions of that image floated to him, the helplessness and distress over welling him. Instantly, the Uchiha's demeanor changed. He was no longer scared nor frightened, but willing and ready for what ever was going to happen next.

Kakashi heard the voice as well and tried to pinpoint it, but it was nearly impossible. Mist shinobi were known for their silent killing techniques and from what he read in the bingo book about this man, he was one of the former Seven Swordsmen of Kirigakure. Though what he had read was not too good, the man was the first of the Swordsmen to betray his own homeland and try to kill the Mizukage. Though that spoke words to Kakashi about how the Kage of Kirigakure was treating his people, seeing as so many people were trying to kill him.

"Heh heh… too slow." The three genin's eyes widened at the same time when they felt a back presence behind them. Tazuna stared in fear at seeing Zabuza right in front of him preparing to strike. "It's over."

But just as he started to swing his sword, Kakashi appeared in front of him, pushing everyone but the two away from the sheer velocity of his abrupt appearance. Before Zaubuza could even move, a kunai suddenly thrusts forward and impaled the Mist Jounin right through his stomach. Kakashi remained rooted to his spot, seeming to ignore the fact that the Zabuza that was impaled was bleeding water instead of blood.

"Kakashi-sensei! Behind you!" shouted Naruto.

Kakashi looked mildly surprised to see Zabuza behind him. He didn't even made an attempt to block or escape the attack when he felt the air shifted to his left, and the huge blade of a sword coming right at his mid-section. Letting out a battle cry, Zabuza cleaved Kakashi along the waist with a one-handed stroke of his blade. He felt satisfaction at seeing the Copycat's body cut into two. _"What?"_ His eyes suddenly grew wide when to his surprise, the struck-down body of Kakashi turned into water.

"_Mizu bushin? No way! He copied me in this mist?"_ Zabuza stared in shock and froze when he felt a kunai press against his throat.

"Don't move." Kakashi stated coldly. "It's over."

As soon as the tense atmosphere died down somewhat, it was quickly broken by Zabuza's voice. "Heh heh heh… It's over? You don't get it, do you?" Kakashi felt the presence of the real Zabuza behind him.

"... I'm not that easy to defeat!"

The Silent Killer swung his sword in a horizontal slash aimed at Kakashi's upper chest. Kakashi seemed to have anticipated the move, stabbing his kunai into the water clone and jumping at the same time. His feet somehow caught and planted on the broad side of Zabuza's sword and he road it along its arch. Just before the sword hit the ground he leaped and twisted, extending his left out in a spinning crescent kick that the exiled ninja barely avoided. Leaning on his sword handle, he slammed a powerful side-kick against the side of Kakashi's face, sending the jounin flying only to crash into the lake. Grabbing his sword, Zabuza dragging it along the ground as he ran in high-speed to pursue, but he suddenly stopped at seeing caltrops littering the ground.

"_Makibishi?"_ He looked more annoyed at seeing them. "Foolish..." Turning around, he back-flipped over the spikes towards the lake.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura shouted in worry.

"_Kakashi-sensei was kicked away... that easily?"_ Naruto thought.

Sasuke clenched his jaw tightly at seeing Kakashi being kicked away like he was nothing. _"He's also strong in taijutsu..."_

"_Nani? This water's heavy.."_ noted Kakashi as he surfaced.

"Heh, fool." Zabuza formed a set of hand seals ending with both palms open and out with the index and thumb touching in the middle.

"**SUIROU NO JUTSU"**

Kakashi suddenly found himself surrounding by chakra embedded water. His body felt heavy and he could not even move an inch as the sphere enclosed upon him. He narrowed his eyes at Zabuza.

"Heh heh heh. It seems you have fell for my trap instead. This is a special water prison that you cannot escape from. You give me a hard time when you're moving. Now then, Hatake... I'm going to finish you off later." He turned to look at the genin and the old man. "First, I'll get rid of them." He formed a half-ram one-handed seal.

"**MIZU BUNSHIN NO JUTSU****"**

The clone of Zabuza started laughing at the scared genin, mocking them. "You three think that because you have those forehead protectors that you are ninja. But ninja refers to someone who has gone through numerous life and death situations. In other words, you can call yourself a ninja when you appear in my bingo book." The clone formed the half-ram seal and mist started to fill the area. "You three aren't ninja."

Sasuke gritted his teeth, his fist clenching tighter around his kunai. "_Keep calm, Sasuke."_ He told himself. "_He's trying to goad you into making a mistake. I have to remain calm...!"_

"_He disappeared again!"_ Naruto's eyes widened and she saw Zabuza heading towards her with his weapon. Quickly, she raised her kunai in front of her in defense, stopping the sword from cleaving her in half with a second to spare. Though the immense impact from the force of the attack ricocheted her backwards several feet away from the missing-nin.

"Naruto...!" Sakura and Sasuke gasped. The Uchiha then rushed to the blonde, catching her from behind to lighten her fall.

"Everyone!" Kakashi shouted from his water prison. "Get Tazuna and run! You can't win against him! He can't move as long as he has me trapped in this hydro-prison. He also won't be able to use his water clone once you get away from him!" His voice became louder. "Run for it, now!"

"Run away? Not an option," said Sasuke, eyes narrowing right onto the man in the prison. "That became unthinkable the moment you got caught. No matter how fast we run or how far we go, he'll track us down, and wipe us out."

"If we try a Manji defense formation," added Sakura, "he can get around it in an instant."

Naruto finally whispered, "In the end, if we're on our own…we're finished."

"_Our only chance of survival_," thought the three genin at once, "_is to rescue, you, Kakashi-sensei!_"

"Sasuke. Sakura." Naruto called out, never moving her eyes from her target. "Lend me your ear for a moment."

"You have a plan?" asked the younger Uchiha. "Good, because we have to work together for this one." Sasuke turned to the pinkette. "Sakura," he whispered. "Naruto and I will go through with her plan. You stay with Tazuna and provide support for us."

Sakura nodded, a bit more determined after seeing Naruto's burst of confidence. "Hai." "_What? What is this feeling...?" _All she knew, she felt excited at working as a team. "_Was this what Kakashi-sensei was talking about?"_

Zabuza started chuckling. "You seem to be quite confident, but do you even have the chance for victory?"

"What are you all doing?" shouted Kakashi. "I told you to run away! The outcome of this battle was decided when I got caught! Run! Our mission is to protect Tazuna-san. Did you forget that?"

"Hmph!" Sasuke glared at Kakashi. "No, we didn't at all. But teammates don't leave their friends behind. That's how it is."

Naruto grinned. "Are you ready?"

Zabuza laughed at them again. "You sure don't learn, do you? Still pretending to be ninja? Heh.. well… I guess it's time to end this petty game." The water clone appear in front of Sasuke and smashed a fierce elbow into him. Blood spat from his mouth when the clone slammed his foot onto his chest.

"Sasuke-kun!" screamed Sakura.

"Die." Zabuza reached for his sword.

* * *

"Zabuza…"

"Hmm?" The missing-nin glanced down to his captive and found Kakashi, as odd as it may seem, to have remained calm and collected, completely unfazed by the pained screams and the torturous beating inflicted upon his pupil.

"Do not underestimate him. Sasuke isn't one to die so easily."

"Kakashi, has your Sharingan become too fogged that you fail to see what was happening before you? Let me tell you this much. If I'm up to it, I could order my mizu bushin slit that kid's neck off in seconds…" Zabuza continued his voice laced with venom. "…that boy is going to die, along with your other students. I'll guarantee you that."

Kakashi met Zabuza's eyes with a hard stare. "He is Uchiha Sasuke, main descendent and prodigy of the Uchiha Clan. He won't die."

The two jounins exchanged glares with each other, something that lasted only for a few seconds but almost felt like an eternity. It was only when they heard the blonde called out that they both pulled their heads away and turned their attention towards the fight.

* * *

"Sasuke!" shouted Naruto.

The Uchiha caught the item tossed by Naruto. His eyes narrowed in realization and he couldn't help but smirk. "_I see!"_ Sasuke turned to Zabuza and with a simple flick of his wrist he snapped open the weapon thrown to him. It was a cross-shaped shuriken with four arms that looked like falchion sword blades. "Fuuma Shuriken. Shadow Windmill!"

Zabuza seemed insulted. "A shuriken won't work on me."

Sasuke's eyes snapped one and he launched himself in the air. Rearing his arm back, he used all his strength and momentum of his body to launch the weapon at its target. The huge shuriken cut through the air quick and approached the water clone. But just as it got with arms reach of the clone, the shuriken suddenly changed paths and went around him going straight for the real deal.

"I see. So you're going after the real one this time." Zabuza noted. But just as the shuriken could strike him, his free hand snatched it out of the air. "But it's too easy for me!" He felt something. "Huh?" A second fuuma shuriken came from his blind-side before turning and coming right at him. "_Another shuriken was in the shadow of the shuriken?"_

"_A second shuriken was in his blind spot?"_ Sakura wondered as she watched.

Zabuza watched as the shuriken neared before simply hopping over it. "_But it's still too easy for me…"_

Sakura gasped and stared in disbelief. "_He dodged it!"_

Sasuke only smirked.

_**POOF!**_

Zabuza's eyes widened and he turned his head to look back. Shuriken turned into the blonde haired kid! Naruto gave Sasuke a quick nod as he returned the gesture, understanding his teammate's plan. They both started performing handseals. "Rat, tiger, dog…"

The Mizu Bunshin has decided that he was going to attack the one closest to him performing the seals, which happened to be Sasuke. It didn't take long before he reached where the brat was. However, just as he went to stab his blade at the Uchiha, one of the girl's clones came in blocking his path, her kunai currently grinding against the massive metal arm being supported by both the young genin's arms.

"…ox, hare, tiger!"

"**KATON: ****HOUSENKA NO JUTSU****"**

Naruto and Sasuke both took in a deep breath and released a series of small fireballs. Naruto's kage bunshin burst into smoke the moment the flames grazed its back while Zabuza's mizu bunshin, who was now left wide open to receive the full blast, received the same fate, only dispersing into a pool of quickly evaporating water.

Out at the river, Zabuza's eyes grew wide in shock. It seems that those brats have managed to place his clone and him along in a straight line and with him unable to move out of place, the onrushing flames will certainly take him too if he don't abandon the water prison. _"There's no choice then!" _Zabuza pulled his right arm off the spherical mass of water and ducked out of the fire's way.

He dodged all but one of the fireballs, which lattered behind upon release. Calculating the width and diameter of the attack, Zabuza moved back far enough to avoid being hit. But, what he didn't expect was the fireball extinguishing out, revealing a rapid moving kunai heading his way. His eyes traveled the path of the kunai as it passed just millimeters from his eyes, but managing to barely prick his skin and draw blood. "_She hit me!"_

Enraged, Zabuza whirled around to face the falling Naruto. The blades of the fuuma shuriken started spinning quickly and he started the motion to throw it at and kill the blonde girl. "YOU DAMN BRAT!"

Naruto landed on the water for a split second before falling in.

Suddenly feeling the shuriken's momentum coming to a halt, Zabuza turned to look at what had caused it. He stared at the closed fist that blocked one of the blades, stopping its spin and his attack. The blade cut deep into the hand all the way to the bone through the skin. Blood poured freely from the severe wound, but the owner of the hand seemed to ignore the pain. Kakashi stared at Zabuza with a calm and cold expression.

Sakura's eyes brightened. "Kakashi-sensei!"

"Don't forget. I'm your opponent," said Kakashi while narrowing his eyes.

Zabuza caught sight of Kakashi's fiery Sharingan, the red orb that seemed to be able to peer deep within a person's soul. After seeing those eyes, the wanted missing-nin couldn't help but feel a tingle of trepidation surge through his body.

"Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke, you all have disobeyed a direct order." Kakashi said without glancing back at his students. His voice sounded cold and unforgiving.

Their faces fell. They knew perfectly well that although they did all that fighting to save their sensei from the Suirui no Jutsu, they still went against orders and unwittingly placed the life of their client in danger.

'_The success of the mission must be placed above everything else.' _

This is one of the many doctrines of a shinobi. If things had gotten worst, they along with Tazuna might have all ended up being killed and the blame would have been stacked against them. However, they also couldn't bring themselves to leave Kakashi-sensei behind, and for that they felt absolutely no regret for their actions.

"However…" Kakashi continued, his voice lightening up in approval. "I am very pleased with all of you."

A smile spread across each genin's faces.

"Naruto, go join the rest and secure Tazuna." Kakashi ordered whilst keeping his fist locked against Zabuza's huge blade.

"Hai!" Naruto exclaimed, right hand raised in a salute. She then quickly swam to shore.

* * *

Back on the battlefield, Zabuza staggered backwards after Kakashi landed his fist squarely against his cheek. It didn't take long before the missing-nin recovered his bearing and immediately returned to a battle-ready stance.

A few paces away, Kakashi remained standing while maintaining an impassive expression. Somehow, his Sharingan eye managed to look down at Zabuza as if he were nothing more than an insignificant piece of dust. Angered by the apparent disrespect as shown by his gestures, Zabuza tightened both hands' grip on the Kubikiri Honsho's long hilt and proceeded to aggressively charge towards the arrogant shinobi. "Prepare yourself, Kakashi!"

Kakashi remained impassive. Soon enough Zabuza caught up with the Copycat ninja. He swung the massive sword down but before he could make through with his intention of cleaving the Konoha shinobi in half, Kakashi launched a quick, sharp kick against Zabuza's gut. The four people watching on the sidelines all marveled at sheer power of the attack that sent the nukenin flying all the way back into the river.

"_Sugoi…"_ thought Naruto in awe.

Zabuza managed to recover while in midair to land with his feet sliding against the surface of the water. _"Why… Why can't I catch up with him?"_ The famed Demon of the Mist pondered inwardly.

"As a shinobi you should have known well enough not to judge other people simply from your preconceptions and their appearances." Kakashi uttered as he walked towards Zabuza.

Seething, Zabuza holstered his sword behind his back and clasped both his hands together forming the ox seal. Directly in front of him, he could see that Kakashi has come to a halt, his hands forming the same initial seal like he is. Both jounins started executing a long series of hand seals while embedding huge amounts of chakra on the water underneath their feet causing the calm river's surface to wave unnaturally.

"**SUITON: SUIRYUUDAN NO JUTSU"**

Two voices called out the attack in perfect harmony, shocking Zabuza. In front of the two shinobi, a pair of water dragons rose from the lake surface and started to attack each other. The sound of water rushing into and through them were drowned out the sounds of their roars and their attacks. Pitted by their casters, the water dragons slithered around, bit, tackled and ultimately obliterated one another in one massive explosion of water.

Underneath the strong torrent raining overhead, Zabuza held his position, his hands still holding the tori seal while standing a few yards from him Kakashi was doing the exact same thing. _"Stange… What's going on?"_ He asked himself. _"The Sharingan is supposed to be an ability where the user memorizes the opponent's jutsu and copies it. But…" _His mind went back to the earlier event when the two jounins were executing the series of hand seals in preparation for the Suiryuudan no Jutsu. _"The jutsu was executed at the same time." _Zabuza narrowed his eyes malevolently at the enemy. _"My movements. He's completely__—__"_

"…reading them. That is what you are thinking of just now, right?" Kakashi asked, his voice inert as starts to analyze his enemy.

"Heh.. all you're doing is copying me," Zabuza said, his face reaching insanity. "You can't beat me you copycat bastard!" the two jounins exclaimed at the same time. The missing-nin's pupils dilated, looking at Kakashi with extreme intensity.

"Damn you! I'll make is so you can never open that mouth again!" Zabuza shouted, going through another series of complex hand seals.

"**SUITON—**"

Zabuza couldn't believe who he saw in front of him. A hiate-ate to the side of his forehead. Urban camouflage leggings that melted into his open-toed ninja sandals. Bandages wrapped around his neck and lower head. _"Is that…me?"_

Zabuza blinked. No, it wasn't him. It's just that damn Kakashi. _Kakashi_. _"Is this one of his genjutsu?"_ He turned back to Kakashi and started forming the same set of seals over again. Once he stopped on the final seal, he looked back to Kakashi, only to see his left eye spinning rapidly.

The Sharingan!

"No—!"

**"****SUITON: DAIBAKUFU NO JUTSU"**

Water swirled under Kakashi. The swirl picked up speed rapidly and moved into a halo that circled in front of Kakashi. The water moved faster, becoming a contained torrent of energy that continued to grow. And without warning, the water exploded out in a horizontal cyclone that engulfed Zabuza. For many meters the raging torrent tore across the lake and past the shore into the forest. The strength of the cyclone was strong enough to up-root and destroyed trees and scared the ground. By the time the technique ended, ten meters into shore was torn to shreds while Zabuza was slammed hard against a thick tree at the end of the technique's path. Small kunais flew through the air and the barely conscious Zabuza cried out as he was pinned to the tree by his skin and clothing. "URAGHH!"

Kakashi landed on a branch above Zabuza's pinned form, squatting down and resting his arms on his knees. "..."

"How...?" Zabuza weakly asked. "Can you...see the future…?"

"Yeah..." Kakashi replied, narrowing his eyes at the missing-nin. "And I can tell you this, Zabuza." He twirled his kunai and prepared to strike. "You're going to die."

Just as Kakashi was about to deal the finishing blow, Zabuza's head and upper body recoiled from a pair of senbon piercing right into the missing-nin's neck, spraying blood against the tree trunk. Everyone, including Tazuna gasped in shock. Everyone turned their eyes to the direction from which the needles came from and the trail readily ended on the boy standing on top the sturdy branch of one of the riverside trees. His hair tied in a bun behind the back of his head while his long bangs swayed with the cold wind along with the rest of his greenish yukata. However, what was most intriguing with his clothing articles was the white mask with red designs that kept his face hidden. Engraved on the mask's forehead was the insignia of Kirigakure. It wasn't until Zabuza's body hit the ground did the newcomer spoke. He chuckled. "It's true. He did die."

Everyone stared at him, except Naruto and Kakashi. While Kakashi's attention was mostly on Zabuza's body, Naruto seemed to be upset, looking back and forth between Zabuza and the masked person.

"Hmmm…" Kakashi dropped down by Zabuza and started examining him. After a moment, he shrugged. "He's dead." He looked over at the ninja.

The masked ninja bowed slightly. "Thank you very much. I was looking for a chance to kill Zabuza."

"By the mask, you must be part of the Kirigakure ANBU Hunter-nin squad, correct?" Kakashi asked.

"You are very will informed. I am a member of the pursuing ninja unit that hunt exiled ninja." said the Hunter-nin.

"_From his voice and height, he's probably not much older than Naruto… Yet's he's a Hunter-nin…" _Kakashi eyed the boy warily. _"He's not a normal kid…" _The Hunter-Nin waved his arm and disappeared from his tree branch, reappearing in a kneeling position by Zabuza's body. As he picked up the dead shinobi. Naruto observed this, her eyes narrowing in suspicion at his actions.

"Your battle ends here now." said the masked hunter. "I must go dispose of this corpse. It's body is filled with secrets." He formed a seal in front of his masked face. "I bid you farewell."

"Wait a minute!" The hunter-nin and everyone else turned their attention towards the blonde, her stare boarding directly at the masked shinobi.

"Hunter-nins aren't suppose to take the body with them. They dispose of the body of the person they killed right on the spot so there's no room for error." Everyone's eyes widened. "And the weapons you used to kill Zabuza were senbon needles. The way you used them, hitting the pressure point marks on the neck, show that you didn't intend to kill Zabuza. …Who are you _really_?"

A deathly stillness hung in the air, almost making the atmosphere impossible to breath. Everyone was tense, waiting to see what the newcomer would do. Finally, the hunter-nin sighed. "I didn't want it to come down to this, but…"

With lightening fast reflexes, he threw a few senbons he was hiding under his sleeves. All landed perfectly on the target, right in Kakashi's neck. The jounin's eyes widened in shock, before his eyes drooped from its sudden heaviness, his vision going completely black before he landed on the ground.

"KAKASHI-SENSEI!" Naruto and Sakura shouted. The hunter-nin took this time of pandemonium to his advantage and made his escape, with Zabuza's body at hand. Naruto ran over to her sensei and skidded to a stop on her knees, shaking his arm to get some sort of reaction out of him, but to no avail.

"KAKASHI-SENSEI!"


	9. Revenge Gone Horribly Wrong

**Summary: **She looks up to gaze at his coal obsidian eyes as he gazes downward at her enchanting sky blue eyes. They both thought, _"__Is __this __love?__"_ Who says opposites can't attract? SasuFemNaru… MORE PAIRINGS INSIDE

**Pairings: **SasuFemNaru, ItaFemKyuu, LeeSaku, NejiTen, ShikaTema, KibaHina, ChouIno

**Warnings:** OOC-ness, language

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto

* * *

**Kesshite ****Wasuremasu  
**_by __Aesura_

_**Revenge Gone Horribly Wrong**_

* * *

Inside a two story house along the coast of the Wave Country, Team Seven sat in one of the guest rooms that occupied their sensei. It was almost a half a day after the encounter with the exiled Mist Jounin Momochi Zabuza and the Hunter-nin that took his corpse away. It was nearing high-noon and Kakashi was still in bed, sleeping, just a few feet from them.

Naruto looked over at the jounin who she considered as an uncle. There doesn't seemed to be any critical injuries to his neck, which was a relief to everyone. _"__He __must __still __be __exhausted __from __using __so __much __chakra __in __his __battle,__"_ Naruto tried to reassure herself.

Her eyes then directed themselves to Kakashi's mask. She glared crossly at the inanimate object, as if wanting to burn a hole in it. The blonde remembered her past attempts to look what's behind that accursed mask from when she was about four or five. To put it short, she hasn't been quite successful. …But now that she was back from her training with Ero-sennin, with him unconscious, and with two teammates to help her…

"Ne…" Naruto said in a low voice, cautious not to wake up their sensei. "Hey, don't you want to see?"

Sakura and Sasuke gave their blonde teammate baffled looks.

"Nani?" Sakura asked, having no idea what Naruto was talking about.

"What do you think?" Naruto exclaimed in a whisper. "Kakashi-sensei's true face!"

"Hn. Not interested. I'm leaving. Tell me when Kakashi-sensei wakes up." Sasuke replied, getting up to walk out the door. Sakura turned her attention towards the stoic genin, smiling cutely. "I-Is that so?" she commented, but her thoughts thought otherwise._ "__But __I__'__m __**really **__curious __to __know__…"_

Naruto wasn't about to give up. Guess she had to tempt the bait. "What if he's a… tarako-mouth faced guy?" Naruto's voice went as low as possible. Out of the corner of her eye, Naruto could see Sasuke stopping dead in his tracks, registering her words…

"_Kakashi __having __a __big __mouth __covering __most __of __his __lower __face__…"_ Sasuke's face went blue. Naruto was succeeding.

"_One __more __should __to __it,__"_ Naruto sniggered and then said out loud, "Or maybe he has beaver teeth!" Sasuke flinched.

"_Kakashi__'__s __face __with __beaver __teeth__…" _A shiver went up Sasuke's spine. Naruto just laughed quietly behind. Once the three got settled seated around Kakashi, they started to debate on their plan-of-action.

"Have you done this before?" Sakura asked Naruto.

"Of course I have! A million times already!…"

"Did you even managed to get a look?" Sasuke countered.

"Th-That's not the point!" Naruto turned her head away from Sasuke in embarrassment. "Look, just lower your chakra signature. It'll make it harder for Kakashi-sensei to detect us." Naruto was about to reach to pull back the mask, until a hand shot out and grabbed on to Naruto's wrist.

"AAAAAHHH!"

"HHIIIIIIEEEEEEEE!"

"!"

Kakashi, now fully awake, deadpanned at their reactions.

"Oi, teme! You could've woken Kakashi-sensei up!"

"And your scream wouldn't had?" His snooty tone made her grit her teeth. "Nani? Take that back te—"

"Both of you quiet! We have to keep it down before Kakashi-sensei open... his... eyes... Kakashi-sensei! You're awake!"

Kakashi gazed stoically at them. He didn't buy their innocent feign. "Just what did you three think you were doing while I was sleeping?"

The genin started sweating in apprehension. "Oh nothing, Sensei!... You see, we were just… um…"

Just then the door slid open, causing the four shinobi to avert their attenion towards the entrance. The genin silently thank their savoir.

"Ah, Kakashi-san, you're awake!" said a woman with long black hair, stepping into the room and looking down at Kakashi, followed by Tazuna. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Yeah. I just can't move for a week or so. And, I believe I never had the pleasure of meeting you. Who might you be?"

"I'm Tsunami. Thank you for escorting my otou-san back home safely." Tsunami bowed.

"By the way, Kakashi-sensei, since Zabuza is still alive, how are you going to prepare for it?" asked Sakura. He shook his head.

"I don't need to prepare for anything." He pointed at them. "_You_ three will need to be prepared. I'm going to make you all go through some much need training."

The three of them looked curious. "When I was observing you three during the battle, I noticed that your teamwork is still rough, but it is better than before we left the village. We'll all train together later on a group exercise."

Kakashi continued. "Speaking of which, I am all proud of you three. Even though I was captured, you found the courage to stay your ground and help your comrade despite the obvious strength of the enemy. Not only that, you worked together as a team and even out-smarted an elite like Momochi Zabuza." He smiled. "You are all growing at a rapid rate. All three of you, especially you, Naruto. You've grown the most."

Naruto grinned in acknowledgement. "Glad you noticed, Kakashi-sensei. Those five years of training with Ero-sennin hadn't gone to waste for nothing!"

Kakashi sweatdropped at the nickname Naruto had so generously bestowed to one of the Sannins. _"__Ero-sennin, __huh?__"_

"Kakashi-sensei, since Zabuza is still alive, he could attack at any time, so shouldn't we be training now?" asked Sakura.

Kakashi nodded. "Yes. But it does not matter if Zabuza attacks or not. A person like Zabuza who has been put in momentary death, especially with that blow to the neck and being swamped by his own technique, should take a while before their body returns to fighting condition. So we have time to train until then."

"Sounds like fun!" exclaimed Naruto with an excited smile.

"That's not fun..." said a little boy wearing a hat behind the sitting ninjas. The three genins looked at the boy with questioning glances, though Naruto asked what was on their minds. "Who are you?"

"Oh! Inari! There you are!" Tazuna held his arms out to the little boy.

"Oji-san! Welcome back!" Kakashi watched the little boy with a lazy look.

"Inari, say hello to them. These are the ninja that escorted Grandpa," said Tsunami. Inari eyed the three genin and Kakashi for a short moment before turning to his mother. "Okaa-san, they're going to die. There's no way a person can win by going against Gatou."

"Wha..." Naruto stared at the kid before becoming angry. She started moving towards the kid. "What did you say, brat?"

Sakura held her teammate back. "Stop it! He's just a kid."

"If you don't want to die, you should go home." he turned and started to leave.

"Inari, where are you going?" asked Tazuna. Inari looked back for a moment as he slid open the doors. "I'm going to look at the ocean."

Then he was gone. There was a short pause before Tazuna looked at everyone. "I'm sorry."

* * *

Even if it's almost noon, the forest appears like it's still in it's awakening state thanks to the fog coating the entire foliage in its misty grasp. Two figures occupied a clearing, one sitting down beside an cataleptic one. Not a sound was heard from the wildlife, only the soft audible tinkering sounds of metal clashing upon metal as the conscious one unraveled his medical pack, revealing instruments arranging from scalpels to small hand-held tongs. He slid a dark green tong with a metal edge on one side of the tool from its pocket.

"I have to cut the cloth on his mouth, and make him cough up the blood first…" The masked hunter-nin lowered the sharp tongs down toward his neckline until abruptly a strong grip latched onto the masked one's wrist. Seemingly dead eyes flared back to life, as Zabuza's free hand went up to pull down the bandages wrapped around his mouth. "I can do it on my own."

"Oh, so you came back to life already," the hunter-nin commented, not affected at all by the menacing tone. Zabuza sat up grudgingly, resting his arms on his thighs. His eyes were still wild and dilated, still shaking off the effects of the death-like state. "Geez, you're so rough."

Grabbing one of the senbons fixed in his neck, he roughly pulled it out, causing a spray of blood to spatter the ground. The hunter-nin gasped. "Zabuza-san, please don't take those out so roughly, either." Another sickening pull was made. "You'll die for real."

Zabuza grunted, looking at the kid with narrowed eyes. "How long are you going to wear that fake mask? Take it off."

The hunter-nin bowed his head in apology. "I forgot because it's been a while since I used this…" His hand lifted up towards his mask, slackening it from his face. Lowering it, a very feminine face was revealed. Long dark hair framed his innocent-like face as dark eyes gleamed brightly, giving him the appearance of a porcelain doll. "It was also nice to use it to pull of that act. But if I didn't save you, you would have been killed for sure."

"You didn't need to attack my neck if you wanted to put me into a near-death state." Zabuza pulled the lowered bandage up to cover his mouth. "You're still a wicked kid."

"I couldn't help it." Haku blushed in spite of himself. "I didn't want to scar your beautiful body, Zabuza-san…" He diverted his attention to his neck. "And it's easier to aim at the neck since it has fewer muscles."

Zabuza gave him an irritated look before Haku moved to put away his medical utensils. Once done, he shifted closer to the taller man. Haku slung one of his arms over the back of his neck, kneeling down on one knee. "Can you stand, Zabuza-san?"

Zabuza grunted in reply, finally lifting up to his feet with Haku acting as his support. The two began to tread down that led to Gatou's base. He would never admit it, but he didn't think that he'll be able to walk at the moment without the kid helping him. That battle took a lot out of him than he'd thought. Several minutes passed before Haku finally broke the silence in a low voice.

"You know we're never truly free, Zabuza-san. The older ninja, with the Sharingan… the fatigue from using it should incapacitate him for a week or more, but I sense that he is much like you. The children, too, were not weak. We have a few days, at best." Haku spoke in a soft whisper that sounded more like wind through pines than a human voice, and moved so lightly through the forest that only a few leaves rustled to mark his passing. Even carrying Zabuza's weakened body, his grace belied a dangerous nature.

"You should have killed them. Instead, you attack me. Sometimes I wonder why I keep you around." Haku's pace slowed and he lowered his eyes, staring at the leaf-covered ground. His steps were eerily silent over the carpet of dead leaves.

"If I had killed those children, maybe someone would have... been sad."

"Don't tell me you've developed a soul, Haku." Zabuza sneered. "Put me down for a moment. Your body is too small, and I'm not about to be carried into Gatou's compound." Haku complied, setting Zabuza gently against a tree. It wasn't often that Zabuza showed weakness, and never for very long. Haku had been only a child when he joined the older ninja. For over half his life, he had learned the ways of ninjutsu from Zabuza, unlike those children of Konoha who knew nothing of death and terror.

'_Never __allow __emotions __to __rule __your __actions,__'_ was the way of the ninja. But Zabuza knew the true meaning. A true shinobi felt nothing. Under the mask, only incorruptible strength should remain. If it was necessary to kill, the shinobi must act without reservation. "Leave morals to the priests and love to the wives. It's none of your business."

Zabuza's unwritten book of ninjutsu was far more powerful. Compassion and sadness were not hers to understand. The loneliness that had gripped him when he saw those three young friends - children his own age, and yet he was so much older - that feeling had no place in his heart.

"If we were to kill children, we'd be hunted by two villages. Their families would certainly stalk us, and we don't need the complications of killing locals. It's hard enough as it is to dodge the assassins of Kirigakure." Zabuza nodded, apparently agreeing with Haku's judgment. Since they had abandoned Kirigakure, taking with them many sins and secrets, always their faint trail was followed. It was dangerous to linger in one place too long, even working for the underworld leader Gatou, or to leave an impression.

"We should get going. No doubt Gatou will want to know why we failed."

"We did not fail. We merely retreated." Zabuza grinned, slowly dragging his half-numbed body towards Gatou's fortress, not far off. No doubt Gatou's ninjas already knew of their presence, so moving silently was not necessary. Since they had not been attacked, they seemed to be welcome.

"Clever, and sly too. And with an innocent little face that no one would ever suspect. I like you, kid." Haku kept his head lowered so Zabuza could not see the furious blush that tainted his cheeks.

"_I __am __weak, __Zabuza-san,__"_ he thought. _"__But __I __must __turn __my __weakness __to __strength, __and __live __only __for __your __sake.__"_ Long hair shielded eyes that had become glassy. _"__Because __you... __Zabuza-san...__something __like __love __for __a __weak __creature __like __myself __cannot __mar __your __perfection.__"_

* * *

A few minutes later, Kakashi stood with his team near a river bank, a gushing waterfall towering down from the base of the canal. He watched his students with a lazy look, supported by crutches provided generously to him by Tsunami. "We will now begin the training."

Naruto pumped her fist in the air in enthusiasm. "Hell yeah! So what are you going to teach us,Kakashi-sensei? Katon jutsu? Fuuton justu? Raiton justu? Doton jutsu? Sui—ITAI!" Naruto rubbed the growing ache on her head.

"Baka! Can't you see Kakashi-sensei is trying to tell us?" Sakura scolded, shaking her fist at the blonde.

Kakashi coughed, getting their attention. "Well, yes. As I was saying, today we're going to be working on our stamina and chakra control at the same time. We will be doing this by walking on water."

"N-Nani? Walking on water? How are we going to do that?" Sakura asked in shock, while Naruto and Sasuke looked at Kakashi indifferently. _"__You __call __that __training? __I __already __learnt __that __technique __already__… __You __could __have __at __least __taught __us __a __new __ninjutsu__…"_ Naruto thought unenthusiastically. Sasuke was thinking similar along those lines also.

"Just watch." With that said, Kakashi made a quick hand seal and started casually to walk up toward the edge of the river. However, when he was right by it, he did not seem to stop like they expected him to. He simply just put his foot on the surface of the water before taking another step forward. Amazingly, he did not succumb to the force of gravity. Instead, he jut walked on top of the water using just his feet. Once he reached a certain distance, he turned around to face his students.

"And that's all there is to it," Kakashi said almost in a bored tone, but the look on his face said something totally different, since he was looking at his students with his upside-down 'U' grin on his face. "All you have to do is always expel the appropriate amount of chakra into the water from your feet, and make it match only to the amount necessary to make you float. When you have full mastery over your own chakras, this is the kind of thing you can accomplish."

"Wait a minute! How is learning to walk on water going to make us stronger?" Sakura abruptly asked.

Kakashi look at her with a half-lidded gaze. "Here's the main part. Listen closely. The purpose of this training is the greater mastery over your chakra. To bring out the proper amount to the proper area. This is the most important aspect when using jutsu. This can be difficult for even a skilled shinobi. And it is said that the bottom of the foot is the most difficult area to gather chakra. In other words, if you can master the chakra control needed for this skill than no jutsu should ever be beyond you. In theory anyways."

Kakashi continued. "The second thing is for you to develop the stamina needed to control the chakra properly. Depending on the jutsu, controlling your chakra properly can be difficult. And a shinobi will usually be gathering their chakra during battle while constantly moving. Those types of situations make controlling chakra even more difficult. So while you're walking on water, you'll also be mastering the skills that will probably save your lives…Well, me talking all day isn't going to accomplish anything. This is something you'll have to learn with your bodies."

With that said, the three genin stepped forward until they were on the edge of the river. Kakashi gave them each some last minute instructions and advice. "Your goal is to fully walk on water without breaking your steady flow of chakra. Once you mastered it, then scale up the waterfall over there, using what you have learned. I don't expect you three to reach the top on your first try. Now then, a walking start will give you enough balance for a good first effort. All right?"

With a nod of their heads, Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke took the same stance their sensei had and made the same hand seal as to channel their chakra like Kakashi had. Once they felt as if they had channeled their chakra the same way their sensei had, they began to trek the water.

Naruto took a couple of steps before feeling a wobbly balance as her feet gradually began sinking into the water. _"__Maintaining __a __constant __steady __flow __of __chakra __is __harder __with __these __damn __weights __weighing __me__—__crap!__"_

A yell and a big splash followed.

Sasuke lasted on the water a little longer than Naruto. When he felt that he got his stability, he tried going out farther, but as soon as he ran a few feet, he felt his feet starting to give way in the water. Doing a back flip before he landed on solid ground perfectly, the Uchiha curse lightly under his breath.

"That's about what I expected from Sasuke and... Naruto," said Kakashi thoughtfully to himself, now back on was thrown out of his musings by a voice calling out a good distance in front of him. "This is easier than I thought!"

Looking up, the three remaining members of Team Seven saw Sakura standing perfectly on top of the water. It was actually shocking to see that the girl had got it on her first try, but from what was written about her, the girl could pick up thinks fast, but she did not have a lot of chakra to begin with anyways. This was why Sasuke and Naruto were having so many problems, since they have a vast amount of untapped chakra resources.

"Well, now we know which of you three has the best chakra control. Our young Sakura," Kakashi complemented the girl, who just smiled at the man. However, when Sakura saw Sasuke's face, her happiness soon left her only to be replaced by despair at making the boy look they way he did. The Uchiha looked angry that he had been upstaged by the girl and a little disappointed as well, but the others did not seem to see that. "Now that you've seen the first part of your training, I'll get on to the next stage."

"What do you mean, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked, walking back to land to stand next to Sasuke. All three of them were looking up at their sensei who was grinning like a madman. Instead of answering Sakura though, Kakashi threw what looked to be like two pairs of regular looking wristbands, but each wristband had a seal on them. "What are these for Kakashi-sensei?"

However, when the girl tried to pick up the wristbands, she found she had to use all of her strength to lift just two of the four wristbands and could not lift anymore. She looked at the wristbands in confusion, not understanding why the rolls were so heavy. The wristbands weighed around twenty to thirty pounds easily and that was just one. Setting the two wristbands down, which only then did she notice that the two she picked up wear both pink. Blinking twice, Sakura tried to pick up the other two which were both black in color. Tried being the key word, seeing as the black wristbands were twice as heavy as the pink ones and she could not lift them at all.

"Those, Sakura, are a special set of weights, which I made using regular wristbands and a special type of seal," the blond man explained. "The pink set is for you Sakura, while the black set is for Sasuke."

Kakashi then turned his attention to Naruto. "As for you Naruto, your otou-san already informed me that you're already wearing weights, so you'll be walking on water with yours on. For the rest of the day you three are to walk on water. After you have master that technique, practice running up and down that waterfall over there until you can't run anymore, got it?"

"Hai, Kakashi-sensei," Sakura said as she picked up the pink wristbands and slipped them on her wrist.

"No."

"What was that?" Kakashi asked looking towards Sasuke and noticed the smirk on his face.

"I won't wear them," Sasuke said defiantly, "I've already got my own." Making a hand seal, the bandages around his legs glowed a little bit before showing a complex set of seals. Seeing the seals on the bandages, Kakashi walked up to Sasuke to get a closer inspection.

Then a thought hit him. "That's why you were having such a hard time maintaining your balance on the water, you still hadn't adjusted to the new weight yet, had you?"

At the nod of Sasuke's head, Kakashi's suspicion was confirmed. "Alright then, since you all are now wearing weights, it's time to get back to your training."

Nodding their heads, the three genin got back to work and once again began to walk on water. Walking up a nearby tree, Kakashi made himself comfortable behind a trunk that overlooked his students' training, and tried to relax so he could take a nap. Though before he could get completely relaxed, he heard the cracking of a twig, turning his head in a relaxed manor, Kakashi saw that a little boy was standing behind one of the trees watching his students train. It was strange to see the boy standing there watching them, since he did not really seem interested in what they were doing, judging by the frown on his face. Though when the boy turned around and walked away sluggishly, Kakashi just shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly and took his well-deserved nap.

"Why do they even try?" Inari murmured to himself as he made his way back home. "They're all just going to die anyways. No one can beat Gatou and his men."

While he talked to himself, Inari did not notice that tears had started to descend down his cheeks. All Inari wanted to do was go home and wallow in self-pity on his bed clutching the picture frame that he held as his highest possession.

"Why do they ware themselves out trying?" Inari continued to talk to himself. "No matter how hard they train, they'll never be a match for Gatou's thugs..."

* * *

The morning sky shined brightly the next day. Sakura yawned, watching the construction workers go about building the bridge.

"All alone and lonesome?" Tazuna noted, walking by with a steal I-beam on his shoulder. "Where are blondie and pretty-boy?"

"Training. Walking on water," said Sakura.

"Then why aren't you with them?"

"I surpassed them. Kakashi-sensei told me to stay here and protect you," Sakura proclaimed in a slight self-esteem tone.

"Really..." Tazuna said with a hint of sarcasm. Sakura scowled at his mockery attitude.

"May I have a words with you, Tazuna?" asked a man approaching from behind the expert builder.

"Huh? What is it, Giichi?"

Sakura listened in, all malice dispersed.

"I've been thinking it over… this bridge we're working on… I want off the job!"

"W-why? Out of nowhere like this… you, of all people!" Tazuna shouted in surprise.

"Tazuna, I've known you for a long time. I want to help you, but we can't take this risk. Gatou and his thugs will show up eventually, and come after me, too." Tazuna didn't looked pleased. "Please, just give it up…" Giichi stared at the older man. "The bridge isn't worth it."

This Giichi person was the second man to quit today, the first whom quit earlier in the morning before work commenced.

"I can't do that," said Tazuna. "This bridge belongs to us all. It's everything we've been working toward, for out entire city. When it's finished, it will bring trade and commerce and affluence to us, and put our poor Wave Country on the map!"

"But we're talking about _lives_ here. Your _life_!"

Tazuna started walking away. "It's afternoon now already, isn't it? Let's break for lunch."

"Tazuna..."

He looked back at Giichi. "Giichi, you don't have to come back."

The day was well past afternoon and well on its way to being evening. Workers were leaving the bridge job site and heading home for another night before returning the following morning. The man in charge, Tazuna, was also heading back along with Sakura.

As they made their way back to Tazuna's house, Sakura took in the site of the area of town where most business were conducted. The buildings were ruins, there were holes and cracks were running up and down the walls of the entire buildings. Some building even had whole walls missing and only sheets covering the missing parts of the wall. The homeless and poor littered the street, mostly children and the old.

"_What__'__s __wrong __with __this __town?__"_ Sakura asked as her eyes darted around her taking all she saw into account. "Where are we going?"

"My daughter asked me to buy some ingredients for tonight's dinner one the way home," said the old man.

"Here we are," Tazuna stated, turning into the shop with Sakura following. The owner gave them a lazy greeting. The scary thing about the grocery store they were in was the simple fact that there was hardly anything there. There was hardly enough food in the whole store to make a descent mean for a whole family, let alone the whole village. There was not even any meat in the store, just fruits and vegetables that did not look like they had time to fully develop. It was not something that the Konoha kuonichi was used to and it showed on her face.

Suddenly, the pinkette felt a hand brushing passed her rear. Hearing Sakura scream, Tazuna turned just in time to see the girl dropkicking a guy. "PEVERT!"

"Well…that was certainly a surprise," Tazuna said as he watched the guy go flying out of the shop after being kicked. "Girls around here don't fight like that."

"They should! Something's seriously wrong here!" Feeling something tug at the back of her dress again, Sakura eyebrow twitched in anger, a scowl forming on her face. _"__Eh? __Again?__"_ She turned around, ready to pummeled this person's face to the ground, until she saw a little ragged looking child instead, holding out cupped hand towards her.

Feeling sympathy for the little child, the pinkette grabbed some of candy from her bag, and handed it to the kid. Seeing the smile she received for the small gesture of kindness made it all worth the while to her. Tazuna happened to look back and saw the exchange. Children begging for food was such was a common sight in his country.

"It's been like this ever since Gatou moved in. Since then we've become a city of slackers, cowards, and fools. That's why the bridge I'm building is so essential! It will be an emblem of courage. Maybe the people who've taken the path of least resistance will be willing to walk the road of courage and dignity again. If only we can complete it… I truly believe that our city and our people can be what they once were again."

Tazuna's words left a lasting impression on gazed up at the sky, a sad look on her face. _"__Sasuke-kun__… __Naruto__…"_

* * *

The sun began to fade away as it slowly sank beneath the foliage treetops, early stars taking their place in the sky. Naruto kneeled there panting, feeling the strain of chakra exhaustion taking a toll on her body. Beads of sweat mixed with droplets of lukewarm water trickled down her face as her soaked clothes cling to her slightly shivering form. She looked to the right of her, seeing the black haired Uchiha also breathing heavily, though not as much as her. Throughout the entire afternoon, the two have been trying to re-master the water walking technique, but this time by climbing up the gushing waterfall with fifty pounds and over weights. So far, both of them have almost gotten it.

Seeing Sasuke getting up, Naruto's eyes followed to where he was walking towards, which turned out to be her. Startled, she looked up, her eyes coming in contact with an extended hand. Blinking a few times, Naruto caught the stare of the Uchiha, his obsidian onyx eyes looking downward at her enchanting sky blue eyes. What seemed an eternity to her was actually a few seconds, as Sasuke suddenly grabbed her hand and hauled her up to her feet.

"H-Hey! Te—!" Naruto stopped her shouting, realizing how close the two of them were. The Uchiha looked at her, eyes piercing her with a strange intensity. Her breath hitched. Naruto ignored the way it caused a shiver to race up her spine. She figured it had more to do with irritation than anything else.

"Dobe," the other genin finally addressed her in a sinuous, hypnotic voice. At the sound of it, Naruto forgot that she was being insulted, instead allowing a strange smile on her face. Naruto closed her eyes and was able to inhale the smell of fresh rain with a dash of spice. There was also a vague scent of tomatoes that accompanied it. Their faces were so close together and their gaze didn't seem to want to break. Then she quickly snapped out of her daze.

"What?" she yelled, clenching her fists at her side. "Who do you think you are?"

Naruto trembled with rage as she stood appalled at the stoic boy's nerve. He was close enough that Naruto could see the chunky layers of his haircut. The ends were choppy, as if a stylist's razor had had a heyday with it. The dim lighting outside had been too dark, but upon closer inspection there appeared to be subtle shades of blue. Naruto opened her mouth to say something. When no sound came out, she clamped her jaw shut and crossed her arms over her chest.

"…You really _don__'__t_ remember, do you?"

Naruto was confused. What did he mean? Hardened dark eyes abruptly softened, reflexively causing Naruto's arms to fall back to her sides at the other's unexpected change of expression. "Well… now then…"

"Huh? What are you talk—eh..!" Her heart rate sped up rapidly as Sasuke leaned down, calm and collected as ever.

"_He__'__s __not __going __to-__…__?__" _Naruto closed her eyes, too flustered and embarrassed to do anything. Instead of feeling something on her lips, she felt a hot breath tickling her ear, making her silently gulp in apprehension. Her teammate's hair tickled her cheek. Naruto bit her lip. This was becoming too much for her to handle.

"Let's call it a day."

"_Huh?__"_ Naruto snapped her eyes open at what he said, not expecting that kind of response. She then heard him smirk in her ear, as if finding this situation all too humorous. "…Dobe."

She felt him shove by her, a hard chest and arm brushing against her shoulder, that Uchiha smirk still present on his lips. Naruto, stunned, remained where she was, her body slowly coming to grips with the electrifying shock the contact had given her. Sasuke's actions just seconds ago kept playing over and over in her head. The way she felt, how her face heated up, and how her heart raced a mile per second, submitting to those strange yet strangely familiar touches.

"_What the **hell** was that?"_

* * *

Night had descended over the Wave Country. In Tazuna's houses, commotion was happening downstairs as mostly everyone help prepared for tonight's dinner. Though upstairs, two occupants were freshening up after their long grueling day of training. The shower was running in the bathroom connected to the room the blonde was in, Naruto waiting her turn until Sasuke finishes. However, she didn't mind. It gave her more time to think of what happened between her and Sasuke in the forest…

"_What __did __he __do __to __me __back __there? __It __wasn__'__t __genjutsu __or __ninjutsu, __so __then __what__…__?__"_ After a few more moments of trying to think up of a possible answer, Naruto collapsed on to the floor with an angry groan. Her scowl turned into a pout, eyebrows scrunched up in frustration.

Glaring at what's in front of her, her line of vision came in contact with the slightly ajarred door. Quickly, the blonde's frown curled up to a devious grin. Hauling herself up, she ran to the small bathroom across from the room she was staying in. Grabbing a bar of soap that was near the sink, she wetted it, running back into the previous room and placing the slippery soap in-between the door and the wall, just above head height. Taking a few steps back, Naruto looked up at her work, a foxy grin spreading across her face. _"__Heh __heh, __that__'__ll __show __that __teme __to __pull __that __stunt __on __me __again!__"_

As soon as she heard the bathroom door creaked open, Naruto turned to face the stoic genin, the grin still plastered on her facade. But that soon dropped at the unexpected sight she saw before her.

Dripping wet, with a towel around his neck, was Uchiha Sasuke.

His pants were hanging on his hips, the only visible clothing the blonde could see–keep in mind–leaving her eyes access to wonder at his sculpted chest. Naruto cannot even begin to describe the jolt that went down her spine – jaw hanging, eyes bulging, cheeks flaming, chest heaving.

It's a wonder she didn't pass out. The shock of seeing that terribly attractive, softly chiseled chest… Kami-sama, though – who knew porcelain was such an alluring color? Especially with water dripping down…

Dammit, can't breathe again.

"Do you have a fever?"

Naruto snapped out of her daze, realizing that Sasuke was speaking to her, trying to make her mouth work until she finally found her voice. "N-No. Why?"

"Well, for one thing," he was now looking her directly in the eyes, "your face is turning different shades of red."

"W-Well it's hot in here. Someone really needs to open up a window.." Naruto lied, trying to cover up the truth, which was that Sasuke was the reason why her face was so red.

Sasuke still had his hand over Naruto's forehead, his eyes bordering down on her just like in the forest. Not being able to take Sasuke's gaze, Naruto turned her head away from him, letting his hand fall to his side. She gave a fake cough, snapping Sasuke out of his momentary stupor. He turned his head away from her as well, a slight flush painting itself across his cheeks.

"_I __don__'__t __think __I __can __stand __being __alone __with __Sasuke __right __now,__" _thought Naruto. _"__I __feel__…__funny __around __him__…"_

"Well, I'm going to my room now," Sasuke announced, turning towards the door.

"_No! __I __can__'__t __let __him __open __the __door,__"_ Naruto exclaimed in her mind. _"__That __bar __of __soap __will __fall __on __him!__"_ She didn't know why, but she didn't want to carry out her revenge anymore. She needed to think up an excuse.

"But what about your hair?" she asked. "Aren't you going to dry it or something?" Sasuke looked at her.

"It'll dry by itself," he said.

"What if you catch a cold?"

"I won't." He was now and heading for the door. Naruto quickly walked after him still trying to think up another excuse.

"At least put on your shirt! I'm not having everyone point fingers at me all because you wouldn't listened to me!" He turned to look at her.

"Dobe. It's the middle of summer. The night air is suppose to be warm around the Wave Country this time of year due to its geographic location." Damn. Damn Sasuke-teme for knowing the damn geographic location. He was heading for the door again. She had to act fast. But how do you distract a teenage boy from his current train of thought?

Sasuke had just reached the door and was about to slide it open, but before he could, he felt a tug on his wrist. Startled, he started to turn around. "Naruto, what are you—"

He never got to finish, his eyes widening as he felt something soft collide with his mouth.


End file.
